IPL 2025: BCCI Introduces Partial Replacement Rule for More Flexibility – Here's What It Means

In a major step ahead the IPL 2025, the Board of Control for Cricket in India( BCCI) has blazoned a new rule for partial reserves, which allows votes to subscribe temporary players' reserves in certain circumstances. This rule is primarily salutary for brigades facing unforeseen dearths of wicketkeepers, giving the team flexibility to plan their strategy for the course of the season.

How does the brand new BCCI partial replacement rule function?

For IPL 2025 the BCCI has apparently adopted a special exemption policy that allows teams to hire temporary wicketkeeper injury replacements, subject to those conditions

"If all the registered wicketkeepers in a squad are unavailable, the franchise can request a short-term replacement from the Registered Available Player Pool (RAPP), a list of unsold players from the IPL 2025 auction," the Cricbuzz review said.

The substitute player must possess Indian nationality regardless of whether the initial inactive wicketkeeper is an international player. The replacement player will remain in the squad till one wicketkeepers from the original squad recovers their fitness, at which point the player who was temporarily in the squad must be removed. The replacement player must be approved prior to the 12th match of the season.

What is the reason why BCCI adopted this new policy?

Teams are often in crisis due to injuries that are unexpected or commitments to national duty. With the provision of temporary replacements, BCCI aims to ensure that teams are not harmed because of a shortage of special keepers.

Additional replacement clauses can be found in IPL 2025

In addition to the exclusion for wicketkeepers, the BCCI has clarified and reiterated the conditions that the player is able to be replaced throughout the season. This includes:

• Injuries or illnesses that end the season are confirmed by medical professionals.

• National commitments of teams (FTP commitments)

• The absence of a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) obtained from the home board of a player.

• Retirement from all types of professional cricket, excluding IPL-specific retirements