Legendary Indian cricketer and World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev supported Virat Kohli’s stance on BCCI’s new family travel policy. Kohli, who is preparing for IPL 2025, has criticised the Indian Cricket (BCCI) management committee for implementing rules that sparked split opinions.
After the loss of the 1-3 test series to India’s Australia, BCCI introduced new restrictions on family visits during tours. For tours of 45 days or more, players can only have their family members join after the first two weeks and stay for up to 14 days. Shorter tours allow family visits up to a week.
I feel very disappointed about it – Virat Kohli
At the RCB Innovation Lab Indian Sports Summit ahead of IPL 2025, Virat Kohli shared that it is difficult to communicate the grounding effect of returning to his family amid external pressure.
“It is very difficult to explain to people that you are coming back to your family every time you don’t think you understand something outside.
Virat Kohli, like many Indian batters, struggled in a challenging Test series against Australia. He has scored 190 runs in five games, including one century. The series’ defeat also raised doubts about Rohit Sharma’s future in Test cricket.
I think it’s a cricket board phone – KapilDev
Kapil Dev said that decisions regarding the presence of families on tours will ultimately be up to the cricket board. He acknowledged the importance of his family, but he emphasized that he always needs a team.
“Well, I don’t think it’s an individual. I think it’s a cricket board’s call. My view is, yes, you need a family, but you always need a team.
Players like Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami have accompanied their families to Dubai in the recent Champions Trophy. However, they stayed separately from the team at another hotel. The players covered the costs of family accommodation, not BCCI.
Family should come and enjoy it – KapilDev
Kapil Dev shared during the day of play that the players themselves decided that the first half of the tour should be dedicated to cricket and that the second half could be booked for family visits. He emphasized that it should be a balanced approach.
“In our time, we told ourselves that the first half of the tour should be cricket, not cricket boards. In the second half, families should come and enjoy themselves. It should be a blend,” Kapil said.
Virat Kohli is preparing for his 18th IPL season in 2025. He is active for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) when he plays against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on March 22nd.
Also Read: Jasprit Bumra, Kagiso Rabada called Dale Stein “Gold” to drop harsh criticism of the Pacers