Former captain Nasser Hussain has voiced his opposition to the concept of injury substitutes in cricket. The 57-year-old noted that players could potentially exploit this rule, which might alter the dynamics of a match. He also highlighted that while concussion substitutes have been used in the past, their application has been limited.

“To be honest, I’m not a fan of it. Whenever a change is made to the playing conditions or laws, players tend to use it to their benefit. A substitute can be exploited in that way. If it were a like-for-like replacement, such as with concussion substitutes, I might see some merit in it. But even with concussion substitutes, we’ve occasionally seen some questionable situations.”

The conversation about injury replacements was sparked after Rishabh Pant, the 27-year-old India wicketkeeper-batter, was forced to leave the field during the first day of the fourth Test between England and India at Manchester.

“Imagine playing four days of a match, and then suddenly you need a different kind of spinner, perhaps switching from a finger spinner to a wrist spinner. And just like that, your finger spinner has a hamstring injury, and you make the change. Players will always find a way to use any adjustment to their advantage. That’s why I’m not convinced about having substitutes in cricket, as it can easily be manipulated in a certain way.”