The Indian cricket team, led by Rohit Sharma, is gearing up for the Champions Trophy 2025. Notably, the team will not play any warm-up matches before the tournament and will directly face Bangladesh on February 20. All of India’s matches in the upcoming tournament will be played at the Dubai stadium in the UAE. However, a significant development has emerged before the tournament begins, as Indian players will not be allowed to bring their families along due to the BCCI’s new travel policy, which is being implemented for the first time in this tournament.
Champions Trophy 2025 Schedule
The Indian team will face its arch-rival Pakistan on February 23, following the match against Bangladesh. Then, they will play against New Zealand, a team that has delivered significant blows to India in various ICC tournaments, on March 2. The final match of the Champions Trophy 2025 is scheduled to take place on March 9. Given the duration of the tournament, which is less than three weeks, the BCCI will not permit players’ families to accompany them, as per the new policy.
New BCCI Policy
According to the BCCI’s new policy, families of players can join them on tours lasting 45 days or more, but only for a maximum of two weeks. A board source informed PTI that unless there are changes, players’ families will not be traveling with them. The policy states that on foreign tours where the team stays outside India for 45 days or more, players’ wives and children (below 18 years) can stay with them for up to two weeks. Any exceptions will require permission from the coach, captain, and GM operations, and BCCI will not cover expenses for periods outside this duration.
Background of the New Policy
The decision to implement this policy was taken after India’s loss to Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, where the Indian team performed poorly. The BCCI introduced this policy following the disappointing performance of Indian bowlers and batsmen during the Australia tour, which resulted in a 1-3 loss for India.