Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel shared that he is personally not a fan of the Impact Player rule, as it limits the contribution of all-rounders in the game as well. Speaking ahead of IPL 2026, Axar opined on his own role within the team, clarifying that the Impact Player rule was not the reason for his limited bowling last year as well.
“I don’t like this rule, honestly, because I am an all-rounder (laughs),” Axar said when he was asked about the rule, which has been there since IPL 2023. “Earlier, you would pick an allrounder for batting and bowling. Because of this rule, the team management goes for a particular batsman or bowler, thinking ‘Why do we need an allrounder?’ Since I am an allrounder, I don’t like the rule. At the same time, rules are rules and we need to follow them. From a personal point of view though, I don’t like the rule.”
However, Delhi Capitals finished just outside the top four in IPL 2025, with Axar Patel enduring a poor season with the ball. He also bowled the fewest number of overs in a season since 2018 (34), claiming just five wickets at 57.60, his worst average in seven years as well.
READ HERE: Shubman Gill Breaks Silence On ODI Futures Of Rohit Sharma And Virat Kohli
“The 2025 Champions Trophy was right before the IPL. During CT, my spinning finger sustained a cut: when I was bowling, because of the seam of the ball, it kept getting cut further. It turned into a deep cut. Because of that, I couldn’t put pressure and rotation on the ball. I was bowling less because of that. I was thinking of bowling only wherever needed and saving my finger. After seven matches, when my finger healed, I resumed bowling. It was not because of the Impact Player rule,” he added.
While his bowling is arguably his primary option, Axar Patel’s batting has improved in the T20s. The versatility has allowed him to be put into different roles, both for India and in the IPL. In T20Is, he has batted everywhere from No.3 to No.9, and Axar Patel insisted that he is happy to play into the exact requirement of the team.
“You’ve seen me be the same for so many years: whatever the team requires, I do that. That’s why the tag of crisis-man has come up. I take up the role as per the team’s requirement, be it a finisher or a middle-order batter,” he shared.
“We keep discussing: if a person is scoring four in two, or twelve in two, or 80 runs as an opener: all those roles are important for the team. I go with the same mindset again and again: whatever needs to be done, I will play that role. Because if you don’t get what you want, you will only get angry and disappointed. And the same thing will affect your game,” he said.
“That’s why I keep the team’s priorities at the forefront. When you are open to that, you give your 100%. You’re not readying your mind for one particular position. I am prepared for every role. I am fit to do that. If you don’t think that way, you are limiting yourself. And if you don’t get what you want, you feel down and don’t give your 100%,” Axar Patel concluded.
