"You will want your all-rounders to occupy prime positions"- Aakash Chopra on 'Impact Player' rule in IPL

Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra feels the 'Impact Player' rule will not have much of an impact on the price tag of all-rounders in the IPL 2023 auction. According to the new rule, teams can introduce a player as a substitute before the completion of 14 overs of either innings in a game.

There is a debate about whether this will reduce the prices of star all-rounders like Sam Curran, Ben Stokes, Cameron Green, and Jason Holder in the auction. However, Chopra feels that won't be the case as the Impact Player rule doesn't apply for overseas players when a team has already fielded its choice of four foreign cricketers.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra explained in detail why the demand for such star all-rounders will not allow their prices to dip. He said:

"I don't feel the 'Impact Player' rule will impact the players' pricing at the auction, especially all-rounders. Auction is all about supply and demand. When the supply is so less, naturally the demand will increase exponentially among a few teams.

"You can't substitute overseas players so you will want your all-rounders to occupy the prime positions in the XI straightaway."

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Impact Player rule changes dynamics of the game: Aakash Chopra

While the rule may not affect the prices of the star overseas all-rounders, Aakash Chopra reckoned that could affect the development of players with multiple skills. He thinks that teams might want to include two players with their primary skills rather than depending on one genuine all-rounder for 40 overs.

On this, Chopra stated:

"This impact player rule actually reduces the fascination of having all-rounders in the team. Because instead of playing a player with two skills, you can play two players with their primary skills alone. This changes the dynamics of the game completely."

Aakash Chopra also spoke about which all-rounder will be the focus of attention. On this, he added:

"All-rounders will be a hot property at the auction. The four big names in the overseas all-rounders list (Curran, Green, Stokes & Holder) will be the focus of attention and all will go for massive sums. Sam Curran's demand will be a bit more than others."

The IPL 2023 auction will take place in Kochi on Friday, December 23, at 2.30 pm IST.