Impact of Powerplay rules on the cricketing contest in ODIs

One of the themes in our episode on team selection was how the change in playing conditions of ODIs had made selection hard. We dialed in on how the change in Powerplay rules, along with the two new balls at both ends, has reshaped in the cricketing contest in ODIs and thereby reshaped the way teams are being selected. Support 81allout via Ko-Fi Talking Points: How profound has the impact of the ODI Powerplay rules been since 2015? Is there clear evidence that introduction of two new balls at both ends has skewed the contest more in batters' favour? Has the elimination of the middle overs stalemate resulted in a diminishing role for part-time bowlers? How relevant are the middle-order accumulators since the new Powerplay rules came into being? Are teams fielding deeper bowling attacks than they did in the past? Is there scope for touch players under the new order? How have different teams responded to the change in Powerplay rules over the years? Given the competitive nature of teams in this format, can there be an overwhelming favourite at this World Cup? Has the elimination of stalemate resulted in bowlers attacking more in the middle overs or are batters scoring more runs at a faster clip? Can both be true? Has the Powerplay rule change enhanced the parity between bat and ball. Or has it diminished it? Participants: Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) | Substack | ESPNcricinfo page Ashoka (@ABVan) Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Buy The Summer Game by Gideon Haigh (recently republished by 81allout) India (hardback) | India (paperback) | India (e-copy) Australia (paperback, e-copy) USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy) UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Related: Rule  changes in ODI cricket over the years - Lalith Kalidas and VS Aravind - Sportstar How to watch ODI cricket - Kartikeya Date - Cricketingview How the ODI rule changes have affected run-scoring - S Rajesh - ESPNcricinfo What we talk about when we talk about selection - 81allout podcast