A big rule change has reportedly been introduced by the Indian Premier League (IPL) authorities ahead of the start of the auction in Dubai. From the next season onwards, the IPL is set to allow bowlers to bowl two bouncers per over, making the contest between the bat and the ball more competitive. The rule was efficiently tested by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, a domestic T20 tournament in India. It is now set to be implemented in the IPL 2024 season.
A report in ESPNCricinfo stated that the rule has already been approved and is set to be implemented in the next season. Indian pacer Jyadev Unadkat is excited by this rule change.
"I do feel two bouncers an over is very much useful, and I feel it's one of those things which gives the bowler an added advantage over batsmen," Unadkat told ESPNcricinfo. "Because, for example, if I bowl a slower bouncer... the batsman in the previous case is sure that there's no more bouncer coming. In this case, even if you bowl one slower bouncer in the first half of the over, you can still use one more [in the over]. Someone who is weak against bouncers will have to be better at it and then it will give the bowler one more weapon in their armoury. So, I feel it's a very small change with a huge impact and as a bowler I feel it's very important to have that rule."
"Also in the death overs, you have one more option," he said. "So, it was becoming more of yorker-oriented [bowling] in death overs for fast bowlers. Not it can be yorker, slower ball and bouncers because of two bouncers an over. Even if you don't bowl the second bouncer, the batsman still has that expectation that the bowler might bowl the second bouncer."
The rule could impact the 10 franchises' mindset as well as they look to get in some of the top pacers from the auction. The likes of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Geral Coetzee, Josh Hazlewood, etc, are already on top of teams' wishlist. The rule-change could make the competition for them even more fierce.