New Delhi, (Hindustan Times). Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 has been great for Faf du Plessis. Almost halfway through the league stage, he is the Orange Cap holder, having scored five half-centuries in seven innings and has a strike rate of 165.30.
His fine form has come at the age of 38, an age where most cricketers are long retired, or working in coaching and broadcasting. Remarkably, du Plessis has done so despite suffering from a grade-one intercostal strain. The Impact Player Rule enabled him to play despite the injury. A rule that has fundamentally changed the nature of selection in T20 cricket.
Against the Punjab Kings on Thursday, he scored 84 off 56 balls as a specialist batsman as an impact player, taking an innings break. He scored 62 off 39 balls as RCB registered their second consecutive win against the Royals in Bengaluru on Sunday afternoon and was again substituted.
RCB have twice taken late decisions on du Plessis’s involvement as a fielder. Due to which not only du Plessis but also the team has benefited. Had it not been for the impact player rule, du Plessis might not have been so successful.
During their win over the Punjab Kings, du Plessis said, I saw some of the boys were trying to do this new rule now where they bat and don’t field, so I thought I’d try it too. “
Harshal, who came in place of Du Plessis on Sunday, bowled well and won his team. Herschel was injured while fielding during their win over the Kings and, like du Plessis, took advantage of the impact player rule, allowing him to play only one inning.
He arrived at Chinnaswamy with an injury to the little finger of his left hand, which limited his ability to grip the bat; He later suggested that he expected it to heal “in a week or two”. As a result, he was used exclusively as a bowler, replacing du Plessis at the break of the innings, bowling his four overs and leading the team to victory.
RCB’s results this season have been much better batting first (played three, won three) than chasing (played four, lost three), and perhaps their use of the Impact Rule is one of the reasons. Asibi has taken advantage of this rule better than other teams.
Source: dainikbhaskarup.com
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