The BCCI has reportedly announced sweeping changes to Indian cricket team's player regulations in the wake of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy debacle.
Cracking the whip against the players, the Indian board implemented a stringent 10-point guidelines, including making participation in domestic tournaments mandatory and limiting travel of wives and girlfriends on overseas tours. It also warned of disciplinary action in case of non-compliance.
Meanwhile, former India cricketer Yograj Singh has backed the BCCI’s 10-point policy to uphold 'professionalism and discipline'.
“When one is traveling with the team, what is the point of traveling with your family?" Yograj said in an interview with IANS.
“It shakes your focus. You can do whatever once you retire but when you’re playing for your country then carrying your chefs and all adds an extra burden. Wives don’t really know much about cricket, why would you want your kids and wife with you? When you’re playing, the team is your family, I don’t think it is needed. I am against it."
Yograj also shared his two cents on India’s squad selection for the 2025 Champions Trophy, which was announced by chief selector Ajit Agarkar and skipper Rohit Sharma in a press conference on Saturday (January 18).
He namedropped two players from his state — Shubman Gill, who he felt was a future India captain, and Abhishek Sharma, who he thought deserved a chance in the team.
“I am very happy, I want to congratulate the selectors and the BCCI. The people who have played cricket are the ones who have selected the team. They have retained the correct players, Rohit will be captaining the side and Shubman Gill will be the vice-captain because he will be leading in the future.
“This is the correct way of going about things, we should back and support players who are going through a rough patch. I will say that Abhishek Sharma should have also been in the team as he is going to be a big player in the future and this is a great opportunity for him to learn," he said.
India will begin their Champions Trophy campaign on February 20 against Bangladesh at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
India squad for Champions Trophy 2025: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Arshdeep Singh
