Shahbaz Ahamad is a spin-bowling all-rounder whose numbers paint a concerning picture. His raw WAR/M of -0.06 is negative, meaning he contributed less than a replacement-level player across 511 T20 balls. His regressed WAR/M of 0.00 sits at replacement level after regression, and his projected WAR/M of -0.11 trends further downward.

Why He Misses the XII

Both his batting (-0.02 WAR/M) and bowling (-0.04 WAR/M) contributions are negative. His batting SR of 123 across 645 balls is below average across all phases, and his bowling economy of 8.1 across 1158 balls is adequate but unremarkable.

His middle-overs batting SR of 109 and death SR of 147 are both well below league averages. On the bowling side, his middle-overs economy of 7.8 is respectable, but not enough to offset the batting drag.

Bowling Value

Ahamad has taken 54 career T20 wickets across 199 overs. His middle-overs economy of 7.8 and PP economy of 8.5 show containing ability. The issue is that Rathi and Siddharth offer better bowling value without the batting liability.

What This Means for IPL 2026

Ahamad's xImpact of 18 is among the lowest in the squad. He is a deep reserve who enters only in emergency scenarios. His experience (511 T20 balls, 72% IPL confidence) means the sample is large enough that the negative numbers are not noise. LSG would need multiple injuries to both spinners and middle-order batters before Ahamad becomes a serious selection option.