The impact player rule in the Indian Premier League (IPL) was introduced in 2023; however, the addition to the tournament continues to generate polarising opinions. The 19th edition of the T20 competition would be the fourth year this rule has been in place, allowing teams to have an extra batter and bowler during their batting and fielding innings. However, having some sort of advantage is not a reason enough for this rule to cut mustard with captains across the tournament. Earlier, the impact rule was criticised by the likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. The chorus gained more steam ahead of the IPL 2026 season as it was called out by Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill.
During a pre-season press conference, Gill said that the impact sub rule takes the skills out of the game and undermines the fundamentals of the sport. The latest addition allows teams to play an extra bowler or batter, depending on the game situation, effectively changing the dynamics from 11 vs 11 to 12 vs 12. The topic was a hotly debated one during the captains’ meeting earlier this week as several skippers made their reservations clear. However, despite the growing chorus against the rule, the impact sub is here to stay at least until the 2027 season of the tournament.
On Saturday, Gill’s Gujarat Titans teammate Jos Buttler echoed his IPL captain’s sentiment, saying the rule does play around with the basic nature of the sport. With this remark, the former England skipper became the latest addition to the list of players to voice their frustration with the impact player rule.
“I think it does play around with the fundamentals of the game. Cricket’s been 11 aside for so long, and being a bit of a traditionalist, I kind of like that, because it makes the value of all-rounders even more important. It makes the captains more important, being able to play the game with 11. With that being said, the impact rule has given more players more opportunities. It’s thrown a different dynamic, a different talking point into the game, which you always need to add at different times,” Buttler said while replying to a Hindustan Times Digital query during a select media interaction.
“So it’s certainly done that, and it’s been different. But I like the game as an 11-aside game, so that I would lean towards that,” he added.
‘I tried’
Buttler enters the IPL 2026 campaign on the back of an underwhelming T20 World Cup 2026, where England reached the semi-finals. In the eight matches he played in the tournament, the right-handed batter managed just 87 runs, with his highest score being 26 against Nepal at the Wankhede Stadium.
However, having played the sport for several years now, Buttler understands the pressure of the game, saying he tried his best in the tournament, but in the end, it wasn’t meant to be.
“I tried hard to put a lot of effort into that World Cup and for a multitude of reasons probably it just didn’t quite work out and actually having the capacity and discipline to just say that’s okay, you know what, I tried hard at their game, that there is elements of things that I can’t control and everyone else is trying to do well as well so it just didn’t quite work out,” said Buttler.
“Being a 35 year old player, 15 years of times where I’ve had good form, I’ve had bad form, I’ve had tournaments that went really well, I’ve had tournaments that didn’t go to plan so you’re always trying to reflect self-analysis but pinpointing one thing, I don’t think there’s actually, if there was that one secret then I think we’d all know it and we’d all score runs every time but I don’t think that exists so it’s just I’ve had a bit of space from the game which I’ve really enjoyed and I’ve reflected on. Whether I’ve scored runs or not, the challenge is the same thing for me to go to practice with energy and optimism, prepare well and then go to the game and take it from there,” he added.
Ahead of the IPL 2026 season, the Gujarat Titans also roped in former Australia opening batter Matthew Hayden as the batting coach, and as expected, Buttler is eagerly looking forward to working alongside him. The former England white-ball captain also expressed gratitude towards the IPL for being a constant learning curve for him.
“The IPL has been the biggest influence on my cricket career. Some of the lessons that I’ve learned during IPL season, some of the interactions I’ve had, some of the people I’ve had the pleasure of getting to meet and work with as coaches and players. And not just in the IPL; some of the conversations I’ve taken from the IPL have served me well when playing for England in Test cricket, T20 cricket, and 50-over cricket. So this had a huge impact,” said the 35-year-old ahead of GT’s IPL 2026 opener against the Punjab Kings on March 31.
“Been here for three or four days and getting to talk to Matthew Hayden about batting, I wouldn’t get that opportunity probably otherwise,” he added.
