The Impact Player rule has come under criticism ahead of IPL 2026. Leading voices in cricket, like Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma, have called out the rule for taking away all-rounders’ skill set in matches. RCB head coach Andy Flower also joined the bandwagon, sharing his opinion on the rule.
Speaking ahead of the IPL 2026 season opener between RCB and SRH, Flower said, “I think it has been a good innovation, it’s interesting to be part of it. You’re making decisions on the impact player, and I think it’s interesting for the audience to debate what’s right and what’s wrong, so tactically it’s quite an interesting addition to the game.”
‘A little bit tricky’
He also felt that it makes selecting a team for a match more ‘tricky’.
“I must say that one of the things I love about cricket is that when you select an 11, one of the challenges you have is balancing your 11 – the length of the batting order, balancing, perhaps, some guys that can’t feel that well and it’s one of the things that makes selection a little bit tricky,” he said.
“The impact player rule hides that selection problem a little, so I think one of the great things about cricket is some of the debates around selection and when you select single-skilled players, you weaken another area of your game, the impact player can hide that, so there are pros and cons I think to it,” he added.
Apart from Gill, Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel have also expressed concerns about the rule. Gill, who is the ODI and Test captain, said that the rule should not exist and that it takes the skill out of the sport.
