'Taking your wives on tours is not wrong...'- Kapil Dev reacts to BCCI rule

The BCCI has recently introduced a new rule limiting the family time of players during tours, which has received massive backlash from the former cricketers, especially overseas. However, the legendary cricketer Kapil Dev welcomed the BCCI’s move.

The 1983 World Cup-winning captain has admitted that bringing families on the tours isn't wrong but emphasized the importance of team bonding. He suggested that players should focus more on their national commitments while spending some quality time with the team at the same time.

Kapil Dev welcomes BCCI's policy for family to improve team unity and performance

According to the latest rules, wives and families can stay with the Indian players for up to 14 days on tours longer than 45 days, while they can only stay for seven days together on the shorter tours. The BCCI took this step because they felt having family members present throughout the entire tour could impact the players' performance and team unity after India’s disastrous Australia tour.

Read Also: "Virat Kohli doesn't need captaincy"- RCB Director Mo Bobat

Kapil Dev was quoted as saying by Cricket Adda, “Taking your wives on tours is not wrong, but I feel that if the tour is one month, they should not be allowed for the first 20 days so that the players can play together as a team. Similarly, for a three-month campaign, at least for a month, players should be left alone with the team.”

He also backed the BCCI's stance on the Indian cricket team’s travel. Kapil Dev has pointed out that cricket is a team sport, and traveling together is important for maintaining unity and camaraderie among players, so the board took the great step of stopping players from traveling alone. He added. “Also, the team should travel together; this is not an individual sport.”

Kapil Dev questions Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's return to Ranji after more than a decade

Meanwhile, Kapil Dev has shared his thoughts on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s recent return to domestic cricket after the BCCI made it mandatory for players to play for their state teams if they are not on national duty and fit to play. Notably, Virat Kohli played for Delhi after 13 years, while Rohit Sharma also played for Mumbai after a decade in the Ranji Trophy 2024-25.

However, the legendary cricketer felt that it didn’t look ideal for players of Kohli and Rohit’s stature to play in domestic cricket after such a long gap. He emphasized that the focus should not just be on their performances but on strengthening the domestic system.

Read Also: Virat Kohli's major technical flaw exposed by friend right before Champions Trophy 2025

It does not look good at all: Kapil Dev

Kapil Dev signed off by saying, “If you are talking about Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma playing the Ranji Trophy after 12 years...how is that right? It does not look good at all. It's not because they did not perform. Whether they score runs or not, you have to score runs in domestic cricket. So yes, certain strong measures have to be taken.

But my point is, had we won or had Rohit or Kohli scored runs, would they have played the Ranji Trophy? Don't look at the performances; make the system strong. Whether you score zero or lakhs of runs, play cricket by staying within the system.”