Indian cricketers can take their families to only one game of the 2025 Champions Trophy, India Today reported. The move comes in the wake of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) strict measures curtailing personal family time following the underwhelming performance of the Indian team in the 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.
The BCCI has moved to focus on team solidarity and reduce player distractions, particularly after India suffered heavily in the Test series in Australia and New Zealand. According to the new policy, cricketers must seek advance approval from the BCCI if they want their relatives to watch a match.
The players will have to inform the board beforehand of the match in which they want their family to attend, and accordingly, permission will be given. The team, which is headed by Rohit Sharma, will be playing all their group-stage games in Dubai against Bangladesh, Pakistan, and New Zealand, and if they reach the semi-finals and finals, they will play additional games at the same stadium.
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A BCCI official revealed, “While the intention is still of team bonding and keeping players united without any sort of distraction, the BCCI has now consented to give cricketers permission to get family members (parents or spouses) to join them for a single match of the Champions Trophy, but with prior approval obtained from the board.”
This decision follows the Indian team’s poor performance in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, where India lost 1-3 to Australia. There were reports of tension in the dressing room, with several controversies making the headlines. These included the unexpected retirement of Ravichandran Ashwin, leadership struggles within the team, and Rohit Sharma opting out of playing himself in the series-deciding match.
In order to have tighter discipline, the BCCI has implemented additional rules on family travel during tours. In the event of a 45-day or longer tournament, families can stay for up to 14 days. For shorter tours, this would be cut down to 7 days. Crucially, wives are not allowed to accompany players throughout the whole tournament, and all players have to travel together in team buses.
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Any additional luggage above the 150 kg allowance will be the responsibility of the player, since the BCCI will not be covering excess charges. Also, Gautam Gambhir’s personal manager will not be permitted to travel on the team bus or take his seat in the VIP box for games. These precautions are among the BCCI’s attempt to keep players united and concentrated during the high-stakes tournament.
