New Delhi: Team India superstar Virat Kohli on Saturday took a swipe at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) as he criticised the board’s decision to curb family time on the team’s tours. Kohli stressed the importance of having their family members around them for the players and highlighted how it helps them in dealing with the tough and intense moments on the field.
The BCCI decided to limit family time for players on the tours after India’s humiliating 3-1 defeat against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. The board issued a directive which stated that the family members of the players, including their wives and partners, cannot stay longer than 14 days on tours of over 45 days.
The BCCI’s directive also stated that the family members of the players can join them only after the first 14 days of a tour which is of more than 45 days. The family members can accompany the players for a maximum of a week on tours shorter than 45 days. The directive from the BCCI was a part of several disciplinary measures taken by the board after India’s defeat in the Australia Test series.
However, Kohli has strongly spoken against such rules and emphasised on the importance of letting players have family time on gruelling tours. “The role of family is very difficult to explain to people…how grounding it is to just come back to your family every time you have something which is intense, which happens on the outside,” Kohli said during RCB’s Innovation Lab summit in Bengaluru on Saturday.
“I don’t think people have an understanding of what value it brings. I don’t want to go to my room and just sit alone and sulk. I want to be able to be normal. Then you can really treat your game as something that is a responsibility,” Kohli added, explaining how having their family members around can make the players feel at home.
I feel quite disappointed: Kohli on BCCI’s directive
While expressing his disappointment at BCCI’s directive to limit the presence of family members on tours, Kohli also took a swipe at the decision makers in the board and said people who have no idea about what is going inside the team are brought into conversations and shape the narrative. Kohli also insisted that all members of the Indian team want their family members to travel with them on tours.
“I feel quite disappointed about that because it’s like people who have no control over what’s going on are brought into conversations and put out at the forefront of that — ‘oh, maybe they need to be kept away’,” said Kohli.
“And if you ask any player, do you want your family to be around you all the time? You’ll be like, yes,” he added.
Team India bounced back strongly after their dismal tour of Australia as they went on to win the Champions Trophy 2025 unbeaten. It was a record third Champions Trophy title for India after they beat New Zealand in the final. The Indian players, including Kohli will next be seen in action in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) which gets underway on March 22.
Former India captain and senior batter Virat Kohli expressed his disappointment over BCCI’s decision to limit the presence of the players’ family members during Team India’s tours. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
