Sachin Tendulkar suggests 3 radical rule changes for IPL: 'Impact player needs to...'

India cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar has suggested three changes to the T20 format, all intended to support bowlers and restore the balance between bat and ball. Speaking at Cricinfo Honours, he said he’d like to see the Impact Player rule removed, suggested a Big Bash League-style Power-Surge, and asked for one bowler to get the chance to bowl five overs in an innings.

A version of the Impact Player rule was first introduced in the BBL, but it was soon done away with. IPL brought it in 2023, and since then, the average team scores as well as the scoring rate have gone to all-time high levels. Bowlers and all-rounders have been publicly outspoken against it, claiming that hitting has become easier because batters are playing more freely. That hasn’t been helped by pitches getting flatter.

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“The Impact Player needs to go away. That is my personal opinion. I feel, in a T20 match, you just have to play 20 overs, and then you are adding one more batter to that lineup where bowlers are already being challenged,” Tendulkar said.

Meanwhile, the Power Surge is still active in the BBL, and Tendulkar explained how it works in his suggestion, too.

“The second one, maybe a suggestion, the powerplay of six overs with fied restrictions; let the first four overs be a batters’ powerplay with the field restrictions. Post that, the remaining two, it should be determined by the fielding captain whenever he would like to take, will also get one fielder extra outside the ring at any stage of the game,” he said.

His third suggestion has been made previously by other former cricketers and pundits, too.

“And one bowler should be allowed to bowl five overs. Invariably, the best bowler of the side will take that fifth over. Wouldn’t you want to see your best bowler bowling more? The top batters bat even 20 overs sometimes. Why shouldn’t the best bowler be bowling five overs,” Tendulkar added.

The BCCI has already said it would reconsider the Impact Player rule after the 2026 season.