Former player turned commentator Aakash Chopra has said that the BCCI new rules would force all international players to play domestic cricket as well. He added that fit and available players will have to play the domestic games. Notably, Team India lost 1-3 to Australia in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 and they were knocked out of the racefor a spot in the 2025 World Test Champions (WTC) final as well.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel ‘Aakash Chopra,’ he said, “A rule has been made that if you are available, which means you are not playing for the Indian cricket team, aren’t injured, and the BCCI or the NCA haven’t said that they are managing your workload, you don’t have any rhyme or reason to say you aren’t ready for a domestic game. That option is not there. This is incredible because it was almost a norm for a long time. This thing has started pinching slightly and it has been told that domestic cricket needs to be given a little importance. Everyone is now being forced to go and play.”
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Aakash Chopra also added that Sachin Tendulkar’s last domestic first-class match was later than Virat Kohli’s. He again said that Steve Smith, Joe Root, and Kane Williamson have also played domestic games in the last 12 months as well. In the same video, Aakash Chopra also stated that playing domestic games would help international players regain their form which will benefit Indian cricket.
“There are multiple reasons for that. Apart from your own form, how much you would benefit Indian cricket, and the seriousness of the game itself. It’s happening already. Rishabh Pant is playing. He said he won’t captain and asked Ayush Badoni to continue as the captain. Shubman Gill has said that he will play for Punjab,” he said.
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“There is no clarity about two people thus far – one is Virat Kohli and the other is Rohit Sharma. Rohit Sharma has already attended practice sessions and we haven’t seen Virat Kohli’s practice visuals thus far because it’s been said that there is a slight sprain in his neck. He might go to Rajkot but might not play,” Aakash Chopra concluded.
