For the last two years, we have been seeing the impact player rule in the Indian Premier League (IPL), which some people are liking and some are upset with this rule. Former South African cricketer and Lucknow Super Giants fielding coach Jonty Rhodes is also not a fan of the impact player rule. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) first implemented this rule as an experiment in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament and later it was implemented in the IPL. This rule has limited the role of the all-rounder. This is what Jonty Rhodes has to say. Captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have also criticized this rule.
Jonty Rhodes believes that the impact player rule is eliminating the role of all-rounders. He has also said that this is leading to high-scoring matches and people are liking it, but a price has to be paid for it. News 18 quoted Jonty Rhodes as saying, “I am in favor of the correct use of the impact player rule, because players are playing with almost freedom, so I am only concerned about the role of an all-rounder, because it is a simple role, but plays an important role in cricket and you need it for 50 overs, Test cricket and all other T20 matches as well.”
He further added, “So I am not a big fan of that impact player rule and maybe I am not smart enough to understand what is the right strategy to use a player, but again I say it is not my decision when to send a player, so I don’t worry about it. I am always open to change and try things to adapt the game and make it more exciting and entertaining. I think that has definitely happened and there were big scores on the board last season, but I am still really concerned about the role of the all-rounder, the importance of the role of the all-rounder in T20 cricket and the impact player rule, which is definitely killing it.”
