Page 48 - The Indian EYE 042624

SPORTS APRIL 26, 2024 | The Indian Eye 48

IPL 2024

Rohit Sharma breaks Pollard’s

most-sixes record, opens up

about Impact Player rule

Currently, Rohit has smashed 224 sixes for MI in the T20 tournament.
Pollard holds the second place on the list with 223 sixes. Hardik Pandya and Ishan Kishan

stand in the third and fourth place with 104 and 103 sixes respectively

OUR BUREAU pact Player Rule because you are
taking so much from the game just
Mumbai/New Delhi
to make it a little more entertaining
ormer Mumbai Indians (MI) for the people around you. But just in
skipper Rohit Sharma leap- the cricketing aspect of it, I feel guys
Ffrogged Kieron Pollard’s like Washington Sundar, and Shivam
long-standing record for most sixes Dube are not getting to bowl, which
for the Mumbai-based franchise in is not a good thing for us (India). I
the Indian Premier League (IPL). am not sure what you can do about it,
Rohit achieved the remarkable but I am not a fan of it,” said Rohit in
feat during Mumbai Indians’s clash the Club Prairie Fire podcast.
against Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the The 37-year-old player further
33rd match of the IPL 2024 at Maha- stated that most of the teams don’t
raja Yadavindra Singh International need an extra batter as their batters
Cricket Stadium on Thursday. are doing great upfront.
The 36-year-old faced 25 balls “It is entertaining though, as
against PBKS and scored 36 runs there are 12 players to select from
at a strike rate of 144. He slammed and whoever that Impact player is,
2 fours and 3 overhead boundaries can see how the game is going and
during his time on the crease. change it based on what you need,
Currently, Rohit has smashed and how the pitch is behaving. If
224 sixes for MI in the T20 tourna- you bat well and don’t lose too many
ment. Pollard holds the second place wickets, you can add a bowler, which
on the list with 223 sixes. Hardik Pan- gives you the option of having 6-7
dya and Ishan Kishan stand in the bowlers. You don’t need that extra
third and fourth place with 104 and batter because a lot of the teams up-
103 sixes respectively. front are batting well and you hard-
Meanwhile, Mumbai Indians ly see No. 7 or 8 coming to bat,” the
opener Rohit Sharma expressed his right-hand batter added.
feelings on the Impact Player rule, In the last fixture against the
saying that it will hold the devel- Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Rohit
opment of all-rounders, which was became the first Indian to smash 500
introduced in the Indian Premier sixes in T20 cricket. The highest num-
League (IPL) last year. The impact ber of sixes in T20 cricket is by West
player rule allows a particular team Mumbai Indians’ Suryakumar Yadav and Rohit Sharma during their match against Punjab Indies legend Chris Gayle (1,056 six-
to introduce a 12th player to the team Kings in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, at Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International es), followed by WI all-rounder Ki-
from a list in which the five names Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur, in Chandigarh on Thursday (ANI) eron Pollard (860 sixes), Andre Rus-
are given at the time of a toss. A team sell (678 sixes) and Colin Munro (548
can bring in a player for the playing sixes). In six matches this IPL season,
XI by replacing any player the team Dube and Washington Sundar are to hold back the development of Rohit has scored 261 runs at an aver-
wants, depending on the situation. not getting a chance to bowl, which is all-rounders because eventually age of 52.20 and a strike rate of over
Rohit said that due to the impact not a good thing for Team India. cricket is played by 11 players, not 167, with a century.
of the player rule, players like Shivam “I genuinely feel it is going 12. So I am not a big fan of the Im- Continued on next page... >>

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