CHENNAI: WEEKS after India keeper-batter Rishabh Pant’s injury during the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy in England, which had sparked debates about injury replacements, the BCCI has brought in a major rule change for the upcoming season of domestic cricket. Earlier in June, the ICC had said that replacement of players (domestic first-class cricket) for injuries will be trialled by full-member nations.

According to the BCCI’s playing conditions prepared for the 2025-26 season which begins later this month, a “serious injury replacement” clause has been introduced where a player, who suffers an external injury, can be substituted with a like-for-like replacement. This change, which was briefed in a seminar to the umpires ahead of the season in Ahmedabad, is applicable only for multi-day red-ball tournaments and not white-ball cricket.

For the rule to be applied, the player would have had to sustain the injury during play and within the playing area — it includes external blow which results in fracture or deep cut or dislocation and so on — and is ruled out for the rest of the match. If that happens, the on-field umpires will have the authority to decide on the extent of the seriousness and whether the replacement is permitted; they can consult the match-referee and doctor on the ground. Once it is deemed so, the respective team manager can submit the request on a standard form as soon as possible for a like-for-like replacement. “The BCCI Match Referee should ordinarily approve a Serious Injury Replacement Request if the replacement is a like-for-like player whose inclusion will not excessively advantage his team for the remainder of the match. In assessing whether the nominated Serious Injury Replacement should be considered a like-for-like player, the BCCI Match Referee should consider the likely role that the seriously injured player would have played during the remainder of the match, and the normal role that would be performed by the nominated Serious Injury Replacement,” the new playing condition reads.