"Gives more value for strategy" Ravichandran Ashwin opines on Impact Player rule in IPL

Ravichandran Ashwin also cited an example to underline his stance regarding the Impact Player Rule.

Veteran Indian cricket team off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has expressed his thoughts on the Impact Player rule in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

The BCCI introduced the Impact Player Rule in the IPL 2023 season. The main motive for this rule was to give more chances to Indian cricketers in the IPL.

However, during and after this year’s IPL, multiple players, owners and former cricketers have criticized the rule, including Rohit Sharma. This is mainly because the rule has hindered the development of all-rounders. In IPL 2024, the likes of Riyan Parag and Shivam Dube didn’t get a chance to bowl much.

There’s an opportunity for innovation: Ravichandran Ashwin

Rajasthan Royals (RR) cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin believes that the inclusion of Impact Player in the IPL has given more strategic options to a team.

“Why I think the Impact Player rule is not so bad is because it gives a little more value for strategy. The other side of that argument is it doesn’t encourage allrounders. But no one is stopping them,” Ashwin said on Kris Srikkanth’s YouTube show Cheeky Cheeka.

“In this generation, they don’t do it [batters bowling and vice-versa]. It’s not like they’re discouraged because of the Impact Player rule. Look at Venkatesh Iyer, he’s currently rocking for Lancashire. There’s an opportunity for innovation and it makes the game fairer,” Ashwin added.

Ashwin also cited an example from the IPL 2024 Qualifier 2 match.

“Sunrisers [Hyderabad] brought in Shahbaz Ahmed as an Impact Player [vs Rajasthan Royals after batting first]; he went on to become a match-winner [3/23].

“When dew has the potential to make games one-sided, teams bowling second get an extra option as a counter. If you’re batting second, you can tactically make a substitution by offloading the extra bowler for a batter. Games are tighter, an extra player is getting to play. Barring Kolkata or Mumbai, where scores skyrocketed, they haven’t been a drastic change elsewhere. Like at Punjab Kings’ home venue [Mullanpur], they were all 160-170 games,” Ashwin said.

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