India's legendary cricketer Rahul Dravid has revealed that he did not like the 'impact player' rule in the IPL when he was the head coach of the Indian men's team. India won the ICC T20 World Cup title under Dravid's coaching. He said that although he understood the 'benefits' of this rule, it would make it very difficult to create better all-rounders.

Rahul Dravid replaced Ravi Shastri as the head coach of the Indian team in 2021 and oversaw the development of the team till 2024. The impact player rule was introduced in IPL 2023, which came ahead of that year's ODI World Cup. All-rounders who were on India's radar at the time, such as Shivam Dubey and Venkatesh Iyer, had their bowling contribution reduced significantly in the IPL as their franchises no longer needed their part-time services, they could sub-in a specialist player.

Dravid told Sportstar. “It has added a different dynamic. To be honest, when I was India’s coach, I didn’t like the impact player rule. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t make the game more competitive – it certainly does. It adds complexity and keeps matches alive till the end. But for the national team, it presents some challenges.”

“As a coach, you want to develop all-rounders. Earlier, when both teams played with 11 players, that format gave some players more opportunities to bat or bowl in different situations. The impact player rule has changed that to some extent.”

The rule has led to bigger scores in the tournament. The 200-run mark is being crossed more often and some of the highest scores in the tournament’s history (including the top-two) have come at this stage. “Statistically the scoriang rates have gone up because teams have an extra specialist batsman. It means no team is really out of the game. You can have a batsman at No. 8 or even No. 9, which allows for aggressive batting even after losing six or seven wickets,” Dravid said.

“While having an all-rounder still brings balance, teams can now do without an all-rounder if they don’t find the right fit. Strategically it has added layers to team selection and match planning. I understand why it exists. It ensures every game remains competitive and allows an extra Indian player to join the league, which is a positive. Like auctions and other rules, there are always pros and cons,”

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