'People who have no control...': Virat Kohli takes subtle dig at BCCI's family restriction rule

After India's disappointing 1-3 defeat in the Border Gavaskar Trophy and their failure to make it to the WTC final, the BCCI has rolled out a set of new restrictions for players. One of the most notable changes is the limit on how much time players can spend with their families while on tour. For instance, during a 45-day tour, families are now allowed to join players for just 14 days.

Recently, Virat Kohli touched on these restrictions during a discussion at the Royal Challengers Bengaluru Innovation Lab Indian Sports Summit. He highlighted how vital it is for players to spend time with their families, especially during those high-pressure moments on the field. Although he didn’t directly call out the BCCI's rules, Kohli made it clear that he feels there’s a lack of understanding about how much family support means to a player’s life.

“It is very difficult to explain to people how grounding it is to come back to your family every time you have something intense happening on the outside," Kohli said.

“I don’t think people have an understanding of what value it brings. I feel quite disappointed about that. People who have no control over what is going on are kind of brought into conversations and put out in the forefront. Maybe they need to be kept away," he added.

Virat Kohli was absolutely crucial in leading India to their unforgettable third Champions Trophy win, finishing as the second-highest run-scorer for the team, just behind Shreyas Iyer. Throughout the tournament, he hit several impressive milestones, including setting the record for the most catches by an Indian player in ODI cricket and becoming the fastest player to reach 14,000 ODI runs.

With this latest victory, Virat now proudly holds four ICC titles to his name, which include the 2011 ODI World Cup, the 2013 and 2025 Champions Trophies, and the 2024 T20 World Cup. This achievement ties him with Rohit Sharma for the most ICC titles won by any Indian player.

During the thrilling matches against Pakistan and the Champions Trophy final, Kohli's wife, Anushka, was seen cheering from the stands, alongside Rohit Sharma's wife, Ritika Sajdeh, and their little girl, Samaira. The venue was also filled with the family members of Ravindra Jadeja, Shubman Gill, and Arshdeep Singh, as well as Mohammed Shami's mother, all there to support their loved ones.

Also read| Will Virat Kohli reconsider his T20I retirement for LA 2028 Olympics? Here’s what India’s star batter says