Former Indian batter Subramaniam Badrinath has shared his views on the much-debated Impact Player rule in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Notably, the IPL Governing Council has sought feedback from all franchises on the rule ahead of the IPL 2027 season.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, the former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batter reckoned that the Impact Player rule is doing more harm than good to the cash-rich league, giving an example of the teen batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
While Sooryavanshi won the Orange Cap with 776 runs at a strike rate of over 237 in the IPL 2026 season, he was rarely seen on the field as he was often replaced by a bowler during the whole season. Eventually, he could pick up only two catches in his 23-game IPL career.
“Because of the Impact Player rule, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 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,” Badrinath said on his YouTube channel.
On the other hand, the former Indian fielding coach R Sridhar also expressed his views on the much-debated topic, stating that someone like Sooryavanshi would struggle by only batting without doing anything on the field.
“The Impact Player rule has made the IPL faster and more entertaining. But it’s not good for Sooryavanshi 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,” Sridhar said.
