"Has it come from the official handle?" - Rohit Sharma irked at reporter on being asked about BCCI's new set of rules

India captain Rohit Sharma looked visibly irritated on being asked about the BCCI’s reported set of new rules during the press conference for the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy squad announcement in Mumbai on Saturday, January 18. The 37-year-old snapped back at the reporter, questioning whether the rules had come out via the official BCCI website.

The remarks came days after the cricket board cracked a reported ten-point whip on the Indian cricket team following a 3-1 loss to Australia in the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under.

Rohit Sharma told the reporter:

"Who has told you about these rules? Has it come from the official handle? Let it come, and we will talk."

Here are a few points from the new set of rules reported by ESPNcricinfo:

• Indian players can’t travel separately on tours, training and matches
• Families can stay around for a maximum of two weeks on 45-day tours
• No player can travel with personal staff
• Domestic cricket is mandatory for national selection
• Sanctions if players don’t abide by the new set of guidelines

---

India selector says new BCCI rules aimed at increasing bonding in the team for Rohit Sharma and Co.

Meanwhile, chairman of the selection committee, Ajit Agarkar added that the new rules were aimed at improving bonding between the players. He said in the above press conference:

"I think every team has some rules in place. We have spoken about various things. We have seen in the last few months the need for some changes, more bonding in the team.”

"It's not a school, it's not a punishment. We have some rules and when you are playing for the national team, you following the rules. These are not school kids. These are superstars. They know how to handle themselves. But, at the end of the day, you play for your country. So yu need to follow some rules. There were a lot of rules that were in place. You keep on refining it," he added.

India's Champions Trophy 2025 squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja.