Former Indian batter Subramaniam Badrinath has slammed the Impact Player rule in the IPL and said it is not good for a youngster like Vaibhav Sooryavanshi after 2026 edition. Badrinath noted that Sooryavanshi didn’t field for the major part of IPL 2026 as he was mostly used as an Impact Player.
Many players, including the great Sachin Tendulkar, have downvoted the idea of the Impact Player in the past.
Recently, the BCCI have written to all 10 franchises regarding their take on the Impact Player rule. The Impact Player rule was introduced in the IPL 2023 season and since then the rule has received mix reactions from experts.
The extra player has allowed the franchises to consistently score more than 220 runs and many feel India is not been able to develop their all-rounders because of the rule.
Subramaniam Badrinath said on his YouTube Channel, “Because of the Impact Player rule, Vaibhav Suryavanshi was hardly in the field this IPL. At 15, if he only bats and never fields, it’s neither good for him nor the sport. The same applied to Shivam Dube this IPL season.”
Former Indian fielding coach R Sridhar concurred with Badrinath, stating it would be difficult for Sooryavanshi to play consistently if he can contribute only with the bat.
He said, “The Impact Player rule has made the IPL faster and more entertaining. But it’s not good for Suryavanshi if he doesn’t field. Because how long can he play with just the one skill, and what if you lose batting form? That’s why he has started bowling in the Duleep Trophy. It’s impossible to survive in modern-day cricket with only one skill. It’s impossible to hide on the field in this day and age with all the cameras around.”
There is no doubt that Sooryavanshi needs to pull up his socks in the field.
Sooryavanshi scored an impressive knock of 38 runs off 21 balls in the Asian Games semifinal against Sri Lanka on Thursday.
