A few weeks after Rohit Sharma criticised the impact player rule for holding back the all-rounders from bowling, former India head coach Ravi Shastri has backed the innovation in the Indian Premier League (IPL) stating that it has made a big difference in its existence since IPL 2023. The impact player has certainly been one of the reasons why high scores are being made and even chased at times especially in IPL 2024 and Shastri is happy with the rule.
"The Impact Player [rule] is good. You have to evolve with the times. You know, it happens in other sports as well. It's got tighter finishes. You have to evolve with the times and I think it's a good rule. You saw the number of tight finishes we had in last year's IPL. So, you know, it has made a big difference," Shastri said while speaking to Ravi Ashwin on his Youtube channel. However, India's T20I captain Rohit didn't hold himself back while opening up on the rule pointing out that it has certainly stopped the development of all-rounders like Shivam Dube and Washington Sundar.
"I generally feel that it is going to hold back [development of allrounders] because eventually cricket is played by 11 players, not 12 players. I'm not a big fan of impact player. You are taking out so much from the game just to make it little entertainment for the people around. But if you look [at] genuinely just cricketing aspect of it…. I can give you so many examples - guys like Washington Sundar, Shivam Dube are not getting to bowl, which for us [India team] is not a good thing," Rohit had said on Club Prairie Podcast, which is co-hosted Adam Gilchirst and Michael Vaughan.
Ravi Shastri further stated that generally people will find ways to argue about the new rule but also pointed out the way, the cricketers have grabbed opportunities after getting a chance to play as an impact player, especially this season. "You know when any new rule comes in, there will be…people will try and justify why that's not right. But in time when you see the scores - 200 and 190 - and then like you mentioned individuals grabbing that opportunity and making the most of it, people will start re-looking at how they think about it," Shastri further added.
Interestingly, post Rohit Sharma's open criticism of the impact player rule, BCCI Secretary Jay Shah had stated that the said rule was just 'a test case' and isn't permanent yet in the cash-rich league. "Impact Player is like a test case. We have implemented it slowly. The biggest advantage of it is that two Indian players are getting a chance [in each game], which is the most important. We will consult with the players, franchises, broadcasters [and take a call]. This is not permanent [but] I am not saying that it will go.
"[We'll see] if it's making the game more competitive or not. Even then, if a player feels that this is not right, then we will talk to them. But no one has told us anything yet, so it will be decided after the World Cup," Shah had said while speaking to reporters at the BCCI headquarters.
