Two days before the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season started, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed that it’ll revert the ban on applying saliva to the ball. In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the International Cricket Council (ICC) decided that bowlers wouldn’t be allowed to use saliva to shine the ball, fearing it would spread the virus.
BCCI hailed for saliva ban rule change
Three years later, the ban remains. That is in international cricket. In the IPL 2025, that won’t be the case. The move by BCCI received positive feedback. Mohammed Siraj, Varun Chakaravarthy, and Royal Challengers Bengaluru head coach Andy Flower all backed the decision.
Siraj had talked about how the move will help fast bowlers remain in the game. With pitches becoming flatter, he stated that allowing the use of saliva will help pacers bring swing into the game. With the ball being new, conventional swing bowlers will be assisted. And once the ball gets older, one can reverse the ball as well.
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We have already seen in the IPL 2025 season that a few fast bowlers reverse the ball in the middle and death overs. BCCI’s decision might be a masterstroke that brings parity to T20 cricket, which, according to many like Kagiso Rabada, has become a batter’s game.
Rule change won’t affect batters
In an exclusive chat with InsideSport, IPL legend Chris Gayle shared his views on BCCI overturning the saliva ban for the IPL 2025. The record-holder for the highest ever individual score in the league thinks that we won’t see much change in how cricket will be played, irrespective of rule change.
Asked, ‘Do you think removing the saliva ban will make any real impact on the bowlers in the IPL?’ Gayle replied:
“I don’t know how much it will change (things) because the bowlers can still use sweat on the ball. It wasn’t a big deal anyway in the IPL, as the ball keeps getting smashed out of the park. The bowlers bowl four overs. Some fast bowlers come back with the new ball, try to wet one side, and try to get some reverse swing. The game is pretty much batting-friendly. Bowlers try to get some advantage, but I don’t see too much change with no saliva (rule change).”
The reason why Gayle states that the saliva ban won’t change anything is because, over the years, the pitches and batters approach have changed. The average first innings in the IPL has been increasing rapidly. Five years ago, in 2020, it wasn’t even 170 runs. Last season it was 190. And given the trend, it will only rise even more, it seems.
Image Credit: FondantAggravating68/reddit“Don’t see too much change” – Chris Gayle unimpressed with BCCI overturning saliva ban for IPL 2025 Inside Sport India.
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