New Delhi, Aug 28 (IANS): Ravichandran Ashwin has come out in defense of the Indian Premier League's (IPL) controversial Impact Player rule, arguing that it adds a valuable strategic element to the game.
His views come amidst a wave of criticism, including from prominent players like Rohit Sharma, who have expressed concerns that the rule discourages the development of allrounders and leads to inflated scores.
Ashwin, speaking on Krishnamachari Srikkanth's YouTube show Cheeky Cheeka, emphasised that the rule, rather than stifling the growth of allrounders, actually encourages innovation and strategic depth in the game.
"Why I think the Impact Player rule is not so bad is because it gives a little more value for strategy. The other side of that argument is it doesn't encourage allrounders. But no one is stopping them," Ashwin said.
"In this generation, they don't do it (batters bowling and vice-versa). It's not like they're discouraged because of the Impact Player rule. There's an opportunity for innovation and it makes the game fairer," he argued.
"Games are tighter, an extra player is getting to play. Barring Kolkata or Mumbai, where scores skyrocketed, they haven't been a drastic change elsewhere. Like at Punjab Kings' home venue (Mullanpur), they were all 160-170 games," he firther said.
The spinner-bowling all-rounder also credited the Impact Player rule with providing a platform for emerging players to shine, citing examples like Shivam Dube, Shahbaz Ahmed, and Dhruv Jurel. "If not for the Impact Player rule, he may have never gotten the chance. So the emergence of a lot of players has happened. I'm not saying that's the only way for players to emerge, but it's not so bad," Ashwin remarked.
As the IPL gears up for a mega auction, another hot topic on the table is the potential reintroduction of the Right to Match (RTM) option, which has not been used since 2018. Ashwin, however, is not in favor of bringing it back in its current form.
Right to Match card (RTM), which is only available during the mega auction, allows the teams to purchase an unretained player who played for them in the previous edition for the highest bidding amount the player has received in that auction.
Ashwin argued that if a franchise has released a player because they do not see him fitting into their top lineup, they should not have the right to reclaim him during the auction. "If a franchise has released a player because they don't see him in their top four or five, then what gives them the right to jump in during an auction," he questioned.
Instead, Ashwin proposed a more player-centric approach to the RTM option. He suggested that players should have a say in whether they want to be subject to an RTM, with a pre-determined contract that includes a set price decided by the player.
"You give the option to the player asking if he wants to be right to matched. There should be a contract binding the two parties, which says he can be RTMed only if the price is X amount and leave that pre-determined amount to be decided by the player."