Top 5 seam-bowling all-rounders of all time

Cricketers, who are primarily seam bowlers, do not often go on to contribute handsomely with the bat and over the course of cricket history, there have been only a handful of such cricketers. For instance, players like Sir Garry Sobers will go down in history as one of the finest all-rounders to have ever played the game but what needs to be considered is that he was primarily a batsman and in addition to that, often bowled spin.

The objective of this particular exercise is, however, to take a look at the all-around exploits of cricketers who were not only outstanding bowlers but had the ability to win games as frontline batsmen as well. Now that the objective of the article is out of the way, let's take a look at five of the best seam-bowling all-rounders of all time.

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#5 Jacques Kallis

Former South African great, Jacques Kallis will go down in history as one of the finest top order batsmen to have ever played the game and a tally of 13289 Test runs coupled with 11579 more in one-day international cricket is a testimony to that fact. However, what is often forgotten is that Kallis was an equally effective seam bowler, who could swing the ball both ways and for a long time in his career, he was deceptively fast.

In fact, his ability to bowl at a good pace saw him open the bowling for South Africa in plenty of one-day internationals and his record as a seam bowler would be a cause for envy of many specialist seamers. In 166 Test matches, Kallis took 292 wickets at an average of 32.65 and remained one of the world's finest all-rounders throughout the course of his 18-year international career.

In one day internationals, he did better. In 328 games, he may have picked up 273 wickets but he recorded an average of 31.79 and in addition to that, went for only 4.84 runs per over. He remains one of the finest seam bowling all-rounders to have ever played the game.

#4 Sir Richard Hadlee

Richard Hadlee

He is, without a doubt, the finest cricketer to have ever emerged from New Zealand and among the best swing bowlers to have ever played the game. Throughout the mid to late 1970s and the 1980s, Richard Hadlee was one of the world's leading bowlers and picked up 431 wickets in just 86 Test matches. He held the record for taking the highest number of Test match wickets for some years as well.

In 115 one-dayers, he took 158 wickets at an average of 21.56. However, what is often forgotten is that he was one of the leading seam-bowling all-rounders of his era as well and scored two centuries and 15 half-centuries in Test cricket.

Hadlee's average of 27.16 might seem a modest one but it needs to be remembered that he batted lower down the order for most of his career but even then, managed to prove himself to be an excellent all-rounder across the two formats of the game.

#3 Imran Khan

Imran Khan

Former captain Imran Khan is perhaps the most influential cricketer in the history of the Pakistan cricket and his influence was not only restricted to his role as the nation's leading bowler for much of his career but also as a seriously gifted batsman. Imran could bat at any position and in fact, in Pakistan's triumphant World Cup campaign back in 1992, he primarily played as a batsman and batted at number 3. He top scored for Pakistan in that final with a fine 72.

In 88 Test matches, he picked up 362 wickets and in the 175 one-dayers, he snared 182 wickets to confirm his status as one of the all-time great bowlers. However, he shone as a batsman as well. In Tests, he scored six centuries and as many as 18 half-centuries at an average of 37.69. In one-dayers, Imran scored one century and 19 half-centuries, at an average of 33.41 and a strike rate of 72.65.

For most of his career in the 1980s and later, Imran reigned as one of the world's best seam-bowling all-rounders.

#2 Kapil Dev

Kapil Dev

The 1980s belonged to some of the best seam-bowling all-rounders that ever played the game and former India great Kapil Dev was one of the leaders of that pack. Kapil was India's first genuine fast bowler and throughout his sixteen-year long career, he excelled in both forms of the game. His return of 434 wickets in 131 Tests remained a world record for several years before Courtney Walsh upstaged him and in one-dayers, he was equally prolific, having picked up 253 wickets in 225 games.

However, his skills as a batsman was quite extraordinary and his ability to attack in both forms of the game made him a game-changing player for India for many years. For instance, his 175 in the 1983 World Cup against Zimbabwe is regarded as one of the best counterattacking innings ever played in one day cricket and remains a highlight of India's triumph in the tournament under Kapil's captaincy.

In those days, he had a strike rate of 95.07 in one day cricket. In Test cricket, he scored eight centuries and 27 half-centuries at an average of 31.05. In one-dayers, he scored only one century but 14 half-centuries, many of them leading to stunning victories.

#1 Sir Ian Botham

Ian Botham

A tally of 383 wickets in 102 Test matches and 145 in 116 one day internationals in a career spanning 15 years made English all-rounder Sir Ian Botham one of England's greatest seam bowlers of the late 1970s and 1980s. He was the architect of some of England's greatest Test victories, many of them against arch-rivals Australia and he was capable of turning a match on its head, both with the ball and the bat.

Botham was a carefree cricketer who liked to take the attack to the opposition and his ability to attack unreservedly is reflected in his strike rate of 60.71 in Test cricket. However, that is not all. He also scored 14 Test hundreds and 22 half-centuries at an average 33.54 and notched up 5200 runs in the format. One of his most memorable Test match innings is probably the 148 balls 149 he scored at Headingley in the 1981 Ashes to turn the Test match and the series on its head.

Botham was England's most prominent sportsman in the 1980s and his exploits as a seam-bowling all-rounder are beyond comparison.