IPL 2023’s league stages are almost done and only 8 games are left in the league stages. Today, we will talk about the IPL impact player rule and what it brings to the team.
We have seen so many good games till now in the IPL 2023 and so many good players making an impact for their respective teams. And with the IPL impact player rule coming in, teams have the extra advantage of playing another player other than the starting XI if they need it.
To make an IPL 2023 more interesting, the BCCI (The Board of Control for Cricket in India) has introduced the impact player rule in which teams can change one player with another at whatever stage they want. Let’s first see what is an impact player rule.
What is an impact player rule?
According to the impact player rule, every team may name up to five substitute players in addition to their starting XI after winning the toss. One of them—known as the Impact Player—can take the place of any player on the starting XI at any point throughout the contest.
There is one more condition only 4 overseas players should be in the playing XI. So if there are already four overseas players in the playing XI, the impact player must be an Indian.
The impact player rule in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy
The Impact Player rule was initially established by the BCCI in the 2022 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, however, the conditions were different. Before the toss, a team had to choose an impact player, who then had to be introduced before the end of the 14th over of an inning.
Other countries are also using different things to make franchise cricket more interesting. Cricket Australia (CA) also introduced rules like power surge, BBL boost, and an X-factor player.
The team that played the best after 10 overs receives a free point known as the “Bash Boost.” At the conclusion of the second inning’s 10 over, the comparable scores are assessed, and the Bash Boost point is awarded to the team with the highest score at that time.
Also, in the X-Factor rule, each side will choose a 12th and 13th player in addition to the first 11 who enter the field. After the tenth over of the first session, they may introduce one of those players but not the other.
So there are various things to make the franchise cricket more interesting. Let’s come back to the IPL impact players rule and see what are the advantages of this rule.
Advantages of an impact player rule
(1) Negotiated the use of an all-rounder:-
At first, teams played an all-rounder to balance their side. But after the implementation of the impact player rule, teams can play an extra batter or an extra bowler which negotiated the use of an all-rounder in the team.
(2) Gives balance to the team:-
This rule gives the right balance to the team. If the teams don’t have a proper batting lineup, they can use another batter after using one of their bowler and vice versa with using another bowler.
(3) Chance to the other players than the starting XI:-
The impact player rule gives an opportunity to those players who might not be picked in the starting XI at first. It gives them a chance to feature in the match as well.
(4) It’s like 12 playing vs 12:-
With this rule, it’s like 12 players playing against 12 rather than 11 vs 11.
(5) Teams can name their XI after the toss:-
Another advantage of this rule is that teams can name their XI and the substitutes after the toss. It will give them an advantage when the toss won’t go their way.
The rule also helps when there is a dew in the 2nd inning and the team’s bowling 2nd has to deal with the dew factor.
(6) Damage control:-
With the impact player rule, teams can damage the control. If the team lost a few wickets early, they can send in another batter to control the game. It gives them a chance to score more than usual with an extra batter. And the same thing goes with the bowler. If the teams have fewer resources in the bowling department. They can use another bowler; courtesy of an impact player rule.
Let’s take some examples of this rule from the IPL 2023 till now. In the first IPL 2023 game between Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings, Kane Williamson got injured and if there is no impact player rule, Gujarat only had ten batters to bat in the inning.
Sai Sudharsan came in and played a good cameo for the team. Another example is Faf du Plessis. Although the RCB captain wasn’t entirely fit, the impact player rule allowed RCB to use his batting skills before resting him and substituting another player to have a go.
Suyesh Sharma, KKR’s leg spinner made his debut as an impact player and took 3 wickets to win the game for his team. There are so many examples of that.
The trend of using an impact player
Most of the teams have used impact players in the later part of the match. If teams batted first in the inning, they used their impact player in the 2nd inning and brought in an extra bowler. And if teams bowled first, they brought in an extra batter in the 2nd inning as impact players.
It’s not like teams haven’t used impact players earlier, but most of the time it’s in the 2nd inning.
What do you think? Will this rule be good enough to stay longer? Comment your answers below.
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