Former Australian all-rounder Shane Watson has attributed the limited progress of Indian all-rounders to the Impact Player rule in the IPL. According to him, the rule has restricted players such as Shivam Dube and Nitish Kumar Reddy from gaining consistent bowling experience in competitive T20 environments.
During India’s current white-ball series in Australia, the absence of Hardik Pandya has been deeply felt. With the star all-rounder sidelined due to injury, India’s balance took a hit, leading to a 2-1 ODI series defeat. Watson highlighted Pandya’s crucial value to the team setup.
“There’s no question that Hardik Pandya is one of the most valuable commodities that India has got with his all-round abilities. When he comes in, it really does round out and make the Indian team across the board more balanced, stronger,” Watson told reporters on Wednesday.
In Pandya’s absence, Dube got the opportunity to bowl in the third T20I but endured a tough spell, conceding 43 runs from his three overs. Reddy, who featured in the ODI series, managed only 5.1 overs across two matches and gave away 40 runs in total.
Watson Criticizes Impact Player Rule for Limiting Bowling Exposure
Watson believes that the IPL’s Impact Player rule, introduced to add tactical depth, has unintentionally slowed the development of Indian all-rounders—especially with the ball. The rule allows teams to substitute one player mid-game, often replacing an all-rounder with a specialist bowler or batter depending on the situation.
“The one thing that I’ve been very strong about in the IPL has been the Impact Player, which has meant that someone like Nitish Kumar Reddy and Shivam Dube have hardly had to bowl, if not bowled at all. They haven’t had the IPL to be able to continue to develop their bowling skills in T20 cricket across the board. When the impact player rule came in, that was always going to be a thing that set back all-rounders’ development because of that rule where a batter goes out and a frontline bowler comes in,” Watson said.
Because of this, Watson feels Indian all-rounders are taking longer to polish their bowling skills under match pressure.
Need for Balanced Opportunities in T20 Cricket
The 44-year-old emphasized that while batters continue to grow due to frequent opportunities, bowling development has slowed down among all-rounders. He pointed out that Hardik Pandya’s success came from years of consistent exposure to bowling in high-pressure scenarios.
“It’s just going to take them more time to be able to develop their bowling skills under pressure, because obviously, their batting skills, they get those opportunities in the IPL and across the various tournaments that they play in. But it’s going to take them a bit more time to be able to develop their bowling skills in particular, especially in T20 cricket, the defensive bowling skills that Hardik Pandya has. He can take wickets, but he also has great defensive bowling skills that he’s developed because of the exposure that he’s had over his career,” Watson concluded.
Watson’s remarks have reignited discussions about whether the Impact Player rule in IPL has come at the cost of nurturing complete all-rounders for the future of Indian cricket.
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