BCCI issued strict 'Ban PR' order after Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli's BGT disaster

Veteran cricket expert Harsha Bhogle has a great suggestion that can serve Indian cricket in good stead in the future. Bhogle feels that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) should ban the players and the team members from having PR agencies.

Recently, the BCCI announced strict protocols regarding the players' unity in the team and the involvement of families with the players. Bhogle feels that the ban on PR will be beneficial for the team's overall performance in the future.

The PR agencies of big players have often come to their rescue during their tough times. Virat Kohli arguably has the best PR among the cricketers and also comes with a huge fan following. Along with him, Rohit Sharma also has a good PR which comes to his rescue during a tough period.

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Harsha Bhogle wants BCCI "to ban team members from having PR agencies"

Harsha Bhogle took to social media and suggested the BCCI to ban the players and the team members from having PR agencies as one more rule apart from the other rules related to discipline and team unity.

"Reading of the changes the BCCI is apparently suggesting for the Indian team. I don't know how much to believe but if I had to nominate one rule to be strictly applied, it would be to ban team members from having PR agencies," Harsha Bhogle posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Reading of the changes the BCCI is apparently suggesting for the Indian team. I don't know how much to believe but if I had to nominate one rule to be strictly applied, it would be to ban team members from having PR agencies

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) January 15, 2025

The ban on PR agencies for the team members will allow all the players to be treated equally in terms of performance. The Public Relations (PR) is responsible for managing a player's reputation.

A PR team ensures that a player maintains a positive profile in front of the public despite a poor run. Big players like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been going through a bad patch recently and their PR has come to their rescue.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in BGT 2024-25

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma had a disappointing Border-Gavaskar Trophy recently. Kohli scored 190 runs in five Tests at an average of 23.75 while Rohit scored 31 runs at a miserable average of just 6.20.

Virat Kohli constantly suffered from his old weakness of poking outside off stump and was out off his outside edge on all eight times during the course of the series. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma looked way under par and even had to drop himself from the final Test.

What are the new BCCI rules?

Recently, the BCCI announced stricter restrictions on the travel of players' families during a tour. On a tour of 45 days or more, a player's family can stay with him for not more than 14 days. The family includes the player's wife and children and they cannot be with him for the first two weeks.

If a tour is shorter than 45 days, families can accompany the player for not more than a week. These rules were already a part of player's contracts issued by the BCCI but had been relaxed after the Covid-19 pandemic.

The players' mental well-being was one of the main reasons for relaxing the rules and regulations. However, India's recent defeat in Australia has prompted the board to take stricter action on the team.

Apart from this rule, the BCCI has also made it compulsory for all the players to travel by team bus instead of going individually to the ground. This rule will boost team unity.