IPL's leading paisa vasool players

The most valuable player index (MVPI) is computed by adding up every player's batting, bowling and fielding points -- expressed as a run equivalent.

The batting points consider both the number of runs scored and the strike rate. The bowling points consider both the number of wickets taken and the economy rate. The fielding points are calculated based on the number of catches, stumpings, and run out dismissals.

Best batsmen

Here is a list of the 2009 IPL's best batsmen so far. This list was prepared based on the following stopping rule -- stop adding names to the list as soon as it includes the top three batsmen from every team.

From this table we can infer the following -- Chennai Super Kings have batted the best, but only three batsmen (Matthew Hayden, Suresh Raina and Mahendra Singh Dhoni) have contributed most of the batting points. Kings XI Punjab, Deccan Chargers and Delhi Daredevils are next best. The poorest batting has come from Bangalore Royal Challengers and Mumbai Indians.

Best bowlers

Next we list the best bowlers so far in the tournament, based on the same stopping rule -- stop adding names to the list as soon as it includes the top three bowlers from every team.

A few observations are easy to make like Deccan Chargers have two outstanding bowlers in Pragyan Ojha and RP Singh but their back-up bowling strength is suspect (you can't expect Rohit Sharma to get a hat-trick every time!).

Bangalore face a similar predicament with no real back-ups after Anil Kumble and Praveen Kumar although Dillon du Preez and Roloef van der Merwe seem promising.

The teams with good bowling attacks are Kings XI Punjab (even without Yuvraj Singh's hat-trick contribution), Rajasthan Royals (where everyone seems capable of bowling), Delhi Daredevils and Chennai Super Kings. Mumbai Indians don't have anyone to support the magical Lasith Malinga, especially with Zaheer Khan injured and Harbhajan Singh yet to hit top form. But the real shockers have been Kolkata Knight Riders. After Ishant Sharma, there's only Brad Hodge, followed by Murali Kartik at the bottom of the list!

Best fielders

Finally, we look at the top three fielders in the from every team. It can't be a surprise that wicketkeepers show up among the best fielders!

Notice that AB de Villiers tops the list, ahead of the wicketkeepers. He has taken a lot of catches near the boundary line as indeed have Virat Kohli and Herschelle Gibbs.

This table seems to suggest that Delhi, Rajasthan and Deccan are the best fielding sides, followed, a notch below, by Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai and Punjab. The real surprise is to find so few Mumbai players on the list even with Jonty Rhodes as their fielding coach!

Srinivas Bhogle now works for TEOCO Software Pvt Ltd. This note is based on the detailed IPL1 analysis carried out by Purnendu Maji in 2008. The paisa vasool index uses a model developed by M J Manohar Rao and Rajeeva L Karandikar.