Sunil Gavaskar, the former Indian great, has come down heavily on the current concussion substitute rule in international cricket.
During the India-England Test at Old Trafford, Gavaskar said the rule allows a similar-skill substitute for a player’s lack of skill. He wants the ICC to rethink it.
The substitute issue came up after Rishabh Pant hurt his toe while trying to reverse sweep a ball from Chris Woakes. Even with the injury, Pant came back on Day 2 and scored a brave 50. But he couldn’t keep wickets so Dhruv Jurel replaced him but only as a fielder.
Speaking on Sony Sports, Sunil Gavaskar asked if concussion substitutes are fair. He said allowing substitutes for concussion injuries is like excusing a player’s shortcomings. Gavaskar believes if a player can’t handle short balls, they shouldn’t be playing Test cricket.
Gavaskar said, I have always believed you are allowing a similar player to substitute for someone who is not skilled enough. If you can’t play short-pitched bowling, don’t play Test cricket; go play tennis or golf. You are letting a similar player take the place of someone who can’t handle the short ball and gets hit.
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The concussion substitute rule was introduced in 2019 after Phil Hughes died from being hit by a bouncer. It allows a team to replace a player who gets a concussion during a match but only with someone of similar skill.
Gavaskar Wants Injury Replacements
Sunil Gavaskar has said the concussion rule is being misused and doesn’t include other serious injuries like the one Rishabh Pant sustained in Manchester. He wants the ICC to allow player replacements for clear accidental injuries.
He said, Here it’s a clear injury (Pant); there needs to be a substitute. I would like a committee to be appointed to decide on this. We don’t want the media, especially here and in Australia, to say, ‘Oh, they’re doing this because it’s an Indian situation’. So let a completely separate committee, maybe with doctors, look at these injuries and make the call.
Gavaskar’s comments have started a new debate on how fair and useful the current substitution rules are, especially in Test cricket’s intense environment.
