Suresh Raina has called for the removal of the Impact Player rule from the IPL. Speaking on Aakash Chopra’s Baith and Bol podcast, the former India batter said the rule has tilted the game entirely in favour of batsmen and left bowlers with nothing to work with.
“I am against the Impact player rule. A lot of fit players also bat and just sit down. How will you improve? There is no such rule in the World Cup. I understand the entertainment factor, but there is nothing left for the bowlers.”
Suresh Raina, Baith and Bol podcast with Aakash Chopra, September 2026
Raina played 176 IPL matches for Chennai Super Kings. He batted, bowled, and fielded every game. His opposition is not theoretical.
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The former CSK star pointed to how drastically scoring has changed since the rule was introduced in IPL 2023. Teams now chase totals that would have been unthinkable a few seasons ago.
“Earlier, 170 was a competitive score, but now 250 is being chased as well. Even 300 is being scored.”
Suresh Raina, Baith and Bol podcast with Aakash Chopra, September 2026
The rule allows teams to replace a player mid-match with a specialist batsman from a list of five substitutes. That means sides can stack their batting without carrying the cost of a weaker bowling or fielding option.
Raina’s phrase, “fit players also bat and just sit down,” targets players who contribute only with the bat and skip fielding duties entirely. He also stressed the gap between IPL and international cricket: the World Cup has no such substitution.
Raina’s comments arrive at a critical moment. The BCCI formally asked all 10 IPL franchises to submit their views on the rule by August 31, 2026. The board kept the rule through IPL 2026 despite opposition from multiple captains but opened the door for changes ahead of IPL 2027.
During IPL 2026, captains including Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, and Shubman Gill publicly opposed the rule. Virat Kohli had already spoken against it in May 2024, saying it had “disrupted the balance” and that bowlers felt like they would concede a boundary on every ball.
Rohit Sharma called himself “not a big fan” during the same season. Former Delhi Capitals coach Ricky Ponting called it a “nightmare for coaches.”
Raina is not the first to say it. But his voice adds a different weight: he is a retired player with no stake in the next auction, speaking from experience rather than strategy.
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The Impact Player rule killed the player Raina used to be. For a decade, the IPL demanded utility: bat in the top six, contribute overs of spin or medium pace, field at the highest level for 40 overs. That pressure built complete cricketers. Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Shane Watson existed because the format demanded they do everything.
The substitution rule removed that demand. If a team can bring in a specialist number four at the halfway mark, why carry a number six who bowls two overs of part-time spin? All-rounders are no longer a necessity. They are a luxury, and the IPL has stopped paying the premium for them.
In the same podcast, Raina backed the BCCI’s policy of barring Indian players from overseas T20 leagues until they retire from all cricket. “I feel Indian players should not be allowed now. Our league has become very big,” he said, adding that Indian cricket is “ruling the world” at this stage.
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