Four wins out of five, eight points on the table, and the top spot in the chart — Rajasthan Royals have made a blockbuster start to the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. Having lost in the final last season, RR look determined to clinch their second IPL trophy since 2008 this season.
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Their last two victories, against four-time champions Chennai Super Kings and defending champions Gujarat Titans, the first for RR, lend more credence to their title ambitions. But there’s a big factor behind their last two crucial wins and their ongoing surge in IPL 2023. It’s the new impact player rule which the IPL has brought in this season.
Royals leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who was the Purple Cap winner with 27 wickets last season, touched upon the topic on the eve of their Wednesday game against Lucknow Super Giants.
“It has worked in our favour given the way Dhruv (Jurel) and Dev (Devdutt Padikkal) have batted. It is a plus point because I am of no use with the bat. It helps when you are chasing a big total and an extra batter gets added, which is a plus point,” Chahal said.
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Chahal is right. The impact player rule allowed RR to bring in Devdutt Padikkal against GT as the left-hander made 26 off 25 and the Royals won by three wickets.
But the bigger use of the impact player rule for RR have been in using three top-class spinners together which otherwise would not have been possible.
Apart from Chahal, Ravichandran Ashwin and Adam Zampa bowled in both games, against CSK and GT. The impact player rule allowed captain Sanju Samson to bowl 12 overs of quality spin. Employ three of the best spinners in the world in the T20 format in a single match.
Against CSK, Ashwin, Chahal and Zampa gave away 95 runs and took 5 wickets together as RR won by three runs.
Against GT, the trio yielded just two wickets but only 106 runs were conceded in 12 overs. Essentially it was the spinners who forced GT to finish on a below par score of 177/7 at the home stadium.
Three spinners in T20 cricket can be dangerous but the quality of these spinners has allowed RR to win the last two matches. There’s also a possibility that pitches in IPL 2023 will become more conducive to slow bowlers as the tracks tire out. In such a scenario, RR should benefit more in the future with the impact player rule.
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