Indian Cricket Board is all set to introduce ‘Impact Players’ rule in Indian T20 League 2023

The Indian Cricket Board is all set to introduce a rule in the 2023 edition of the Indian T20 League which can leave a big impact on any game of the league. The cash-rich league will take place next year in March/April. Every team can use one ‘impact player’ who can be used as a substitute. This is similar to substitution which happens in football. The board first introduced this rule in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

The governing council of the Indian T20 League had a virtual meeting on Thursday. And there were talks about the impact player concept, a move that received positive responses from domestic coaches and players, according to a report in The Hindu. 

As per the rules, along with the starting XIs, teams have to mention four impact players or substitutes at the time of the toss. A player can replace any member of the starting XI at any point before the completion of 14 overs from either innings and will be able to play as an allrounder. 

The Indian T20 League Player Registration closed on November 30

However, the impact player concept will not come into play when the game is reduced to 10 overs. Earlier, all-rounder, Hrithik Shokeen became the first impact player, who helped his team in defeating Manipur in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy league match in Jaipur.  

“With the ever-growing popularity of T20 cricket, it is imperative that we look at introducing new dimensions which will make this format more attractive and interesting not only for our viewers but also the participating teams from a strategic viewpoint,” stated the Indian Cricket Board, who were quoted as saying in The Hindu.

“The Indian Cricket Board would like to introduce the concept of ‘Impact Player’ wherein participating teams could replace one member of its playing XI during a T20 match based on the context of the game,” the statement further read. Earlier, the Indian Cricket Board announced that a total of 991 players have registered for the Indian T20 League 2023 auctions. There are 714 Indian players and 277 overseas players in the coming auction, which will take place in Kochi on December 23. 

“The Indian T20 League Player Registration closed on 30th Nov 2022. A total of 991 players (714 Indian and 277 overseas players) have signed up to be part of the TATA Indian T20 League 2023 Player Auction set to take place on 23rd December 2022 in Kochi,” the Indian Cricket Board said.