Certain players have played for India due to Impact Player rule: Ashwin

While the Impact Player rule in the Indian Premier League (IPL) has been criticised from all quarters, all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin believes that it is not all that bad. It has allowed a few players to advance and eventually represent India.

The major argument against the rule was that it completely negates the role of an all-rounder. However, Aswhin sees it differently. "Why I think the Impact Player rule is not so bad is because it gives a little more value for strategy," Ashwin said on Kris Srikkanth's YouTube show Cheeky Cheeka. 

"The other side of that argument is it doesn't encourage allrounders. But no one is stopping them.

"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. Look at Venkatesh Iyer, he's currently rocking for Lancashire. There's an opportunity for innovation, and it makes the game fairer.

"Shahbaz Ahmed, Shivam Dube, most importantly, Dhruv Jurel… If not for the Impact Player rule, he may have never gotten the chance. So, a lot of players emerged. I'm not saying that's the only way for players to emerge, but it's not so bad."

While Ashwin might be in favour of the Impact Player rule, he is certainly against Right to Match, which was used in IPL auctions till 2018. "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," Ashwin argued. 

"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." 

The IPL mega auction is slated to be held in December this year. However, the BCCI has not yet clarified the rules, including player retentions. In fact, the franchise owners were divided on whether to have the mega auction at all. 

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