"Mai iske upar abhi comment nahi kar sakta" - PBKS youngster Suryansh Shedge refuses to comment on controversial IPL rule [Exclusive]

Punjab Kings' young batting all-rounder Suryansh Shedge has refused to comment on the Impact Player rule in IPL 2025. The 22-year-old says he has not played enough matches to share his opinion.

The Impact Player rule has been a talking point among IPL fans ever since the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) introduced it in 2023. Quite a few cricketers and experts have opined that the game is favoring the batters more than ever because of the Impact Player rule. The claims seem correct as teams are posting 250+ scores in 20 overs.

Another argument against the Impact Player rule is that it limits the role of all-rounders, thereby stopping upcoming Indian all-rounders from displaying their full potential. In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda, all-rounder Suryansh Shedge was asked about his thoughts on the rule, to which he replied:

"Mai iske upar abhi comment nahi kar sakta hu. I cannot comment on this. I have not played with the Impact rule yet. As I start playing, I will get more ideas. According to me the game gets balanced out and both teams benefit from it. If you want a batter, you can pick him or if you want a bowler, you can pick him. It can happen that sometimes the all-rounder will be a part of the XI and sometimes not."

Shedge has played two matches for the Punjab Kings in IPL 2025 so far. However, he has yet to get a chance to bat or bowl. However, the youngster opined that the Impact Player rule will not have an impact on excellent players.

"One thing is for sure, if you are good then you will definitely play in the XI. I will not say that because of him I am not able to play. If this happens in the future, then I will think how I can improve myself so that I can come in the XI," Suryansh Shedge added.

"I did not come into cricket because of 1 player" - Suryansh Shedge names 4 players whom he closely follows

In the same interview, Suryansh Shedge was asked to name his idol. The PBKS all-rounder said he did not grow up idolizing just one player and that he tries to learn from Virat Kohli, Ben Stokes, Hardik Pandya, and Shreyas Iyer.

"I did not come into cricket because of one player, but after we won the 2011 World Cup, my passion increased a lot. I idolise Shreyas, Virat, Ben Stokes and Hardik Pandya. All of them are match winners."

Listing down the quality of the aforementioned names that he admires the most, Suryansh Shedge continued:

"Shreyas bhai is quite selfless and for him the team always comes first. From him I learnt how to be good in preparation, how to do my preparation well and also learnt selfless attitude and cricket smartness. Whenever the team needs, Virat bhaiya always wins the match. I learnt from him how to finish matches."

"Hardik and Ben Stokes are clutch players. Whenever the team requires, they try to help in every department. I also try to replicate the same, whatever the team needs me to do," he concluded.

While Suryansh Shedge is playing under Shreyas Iyer's captaincy, he will cross paths with Hardik Pandya (Mumbai Indians) and Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) in IPL 2025. It will be exciting to see how the youngster performs against his idols' teams.