The former New Zealand coach, Mike Hesson, has lauded Pakistan for not applying the ‘impact player rule’ in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), unlike the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which installed this rule in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the last couple of seasons. They used it in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy before the IPL.
The rule has been extended in the tournament till the 2027 season. A few of the former players have praised it, while a few have shown their concerns about the use of all-rounders in the T20 format. The captain of the Indian side, Rohit Sharma, who won the T20 World Cup 2024, and their former captain, Virat Kohli, have not displayed their delight towards this rule.
Pakistan is yet to use the rule where both teams will offer their playing eleven and four extra players at the toss. Among these four options, they could use any player at any point in the time during the 40 overs.
This has led to many teams using an extra batter in the side when they have found it challenging in that department by losing early wickets, while the defending side has increased a bowling option in the event, as both ways, the use of the all-rounders have been slowly demolishing from the country.
Mike Hesson praises Pakistan for only implementing IPL’s ‘impact player rule’
The former coach of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and the current coach of the Islamabad United in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) has lauded the management for only implementing the ‘impact player’.
“I don’t like the ‘Impact Player Rule‘ in the IPL (Pakistan Super League), and I’m happy that this rule is not implemented in the PSL. I don’t like to compare T20 leagues, but that IPL rule is something which I don’t want in the PSL.” The Otago-born expressed in a press conference after the 2025 draft of the league.
Even in 2023, he reckoned that the rule would mean that the sides would always have the extra cushion of going with extra batters, which has limited the opportunities.
“I‘m not a big fan of it. I think that it takes the Indian allrounders out of the game, which a lot of our squad have spent time working on. I wouldn’t say I’m a traditionalist, but I think there needs to be a good reason for change.” Hesson revealed two years back during an interaction when he was part of the IPL’s coaching with RCB.
“Looking at the positive side of it, I think it’s made a heck of a lot of close finishes because the game’s never over. If you got three wickets in the powerplay previously, you could squeeze the middle. Now, they keep going hard at you.” Hesson keeps an eye on the different spectrums of the aspect.
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The former RCB batter, Ab de Villiers, has also shaken hands with Hesson regarding this and claimed that the impact player rule is a bit confusing and puts a bit of pressure on the all-rounders and their role in the teams.
Meanwhile, the draft of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) has ended as many international players, including David Warner, Daryl Mitchell, and Michael Bracewell, have got their new franchises. The England players like Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Sam Billings, and Tom Curran have also been signed in the draft.