Making tactical substitutions is an option in a number of team sports, including rugby, basketball, and football. It's time for cricket to learn a few rules from them. The Big Bash League (BBL) of Australia was the first league to use the idea in competitive sports. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has opted to implement an "impact player" rule in the T20 format for the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy season, which will begin in October, in an effort to achieve a similar result.

If we go by the documents provided by BCCI, in which the statement explains the rule saying, "The concept of an Impact Player is to allow one substitute player per team to take a more active part in a match. This would add a new tactical/strategic dimension to the game." The concept works as follows… 

1. Each team will have to identify four substitute players while naming their playing XI at the time of the toss. Only one of those substitute players can be used as an Impact Player.

2. Both teams will be allowed to use only one Impact Player in a match and the move isn't a compulsory one. If a team decides to play this card, the Impact Player has to be introduced before the 14th over of an innings and the captain/head coach/team manager has to notify the same to the on-field or the fourth umpire before the end of the current over about the introduction of the Impact Player. For a batting team, an Impact Player can be introduced at the fall of a wicket or during the innings break.

3. The player whom the Impact Player replaces can no longer be part of the match any longer.

4. If a player incurs an injury while fielding in the middle of an over, the current playing condition prevails under 24.1 - Substitute Fielders. However, if the injured player is replaced by the Impact Player, then he can no longer take part in the match. Otherwise, Impact Player can only be introduced after the completion of the over for the fielding side.

5. In case of Impact Player used by a team, and if an injury occurs, the same rule will apply as they currently do under playing condition 24. Fielder's Absence; Substitutes. If umpires are satisfied that a fielder has been injured or become ill during the match, a substitute fielder is allowed to field in place of an injured player. The substitute shall not bowl or act as captain. Penalty time for the Batting and Fielding teams will apply to the player off the field for the substitute as per the playing conditions.

6. After the introduction of Impact Player in a match, the player can bat and may bowl his full quota of 4 overs in an uninterrupted inning. In case a player gets retired hurt, Impact Player can be introduced only at the end of the over in progress and is eligible to bat. In any situation, only 11 players can bat.

7. If there is a delayed start to a match which has reduced the number of overs to less than 10 in an innings before the start of the match, then no Impact Player rule applies.

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