Aakash Chopra mentions Hardik Pandya as he bluntly claims Impact Player rule wipes out mediocrity

Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra shared his verdict on the impact player rule ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. He said despite the rule being there, the good all-rounders will stay, citing the example of Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, and Ravindra Jadeja, highlighting that the rule sets a certain standard.

The impact player rule is one of the prime topics for discussion ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. There are very high speculations that the rule might not be there for the next edition because many players have expressed their concerns about the same.

Big names like Rohit Sharma, who is the pioneer of Indian cricket, are also against the rule as according to them it will not benefit Indian cricket. They were of the opinion that rule decreases the value of proper all-rounders, citing the example of Washington Sundar and Shivam Dube.

The BCCI and the franchise recently met and they also discussed about the same. The governing body after that meeting stated that they would be having discussions with the IPL governing council before making the decision for the next edition of the tournament.

Aakash Chopra while talking about the Impact Player rule stated that good all-rounders are still doing their work. He highlighted that a player who doesn't have much ability is not a good all-rounder, saying that nothing will change if the player has good skill. Speaking in a video posted on his YouTube channel, he explained:

"But what they say on their side is that the good all-rounders are still doing all-rounder's work. Who's saying that all-rounders don't work? I'll tell you one thing. Because, look at Hardik Pandya, he does batting as well as bowling. Look at Ravindra Jadeja, he does batting as well as bowling. Look at Axar Patel, he does batting as well as bowling. Look at Andre Russell, he does batting as well as bowling. If he's getting a chance to do it. See, there's a distinction here.

"The weak all-rounder who doesn't have that much ability is not a good all-rounder. But, generally, if the standard is getting low, you give him some overs. That's not going to happen. And it's not like if you have a better batting option and you still say that a bowler should do batting. But, if you have that skill that Axar has, that Jaddu has, that Hardik has, that Andre Russell has, or that Sunil Narine has, nothing has changed."

For good all-rounders, there's no difference from the rules of an impact player - Aakash Chopra

Aakash Chopra further stated that the likes of Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, and others have no effect from the impact player rule. While validating his point, he explained:

"For them, there's no difference from the rules of the impact player. Now, the story in this impact player is that if you get a mediocre all-rounder to play a game or if someone gets a little more batting, then that mediocrity emerges. If we start rewarding that, then as soon as he reaches the international level, he'll be found out.

"The runs won't be made by him and he would get bashed while bowling. You think you'll be able to finish, You won't be able to. See, there's a balance on both sides. One is your batter, the bowler who can bat a little. He's coming to bat. Then, the batter who can bowl a little is going to bowl an over. So, generally, the standard brings down. You pull it down. And the illusionary, the mediocrity all-rounders are going to flourish. In the long term there is no benefit to Indian cricket," he concluded.