Virat Kohli wants change rule: Let wives stay for full overseas tours

“The request was made a few weeks back but as it is a BCCI policy decision, the manager will have to submit a formal request first. Anushka has been travelling with Kohli overseas, however, Kohli now wants the old rule to be abolished and a new policy should come up where wives should be allowed to travel with the Indian team,” a source said.

The cricketing world for long has been divided on allowing wives and girlfriends on long tours. At present, most countries have restricted family time. In 2007, after an Ashes disaster, the England and Wales Cricket Board asked an independent sports administrator to determine the reasons for the 5-0 whitewash against Australia. The report recommended a limit on the time wives and girlfriends should be allowed on tour. This did not go well with players and England’s star batsman Kevin Pietersen had called the suggestion a “load of nonsense”.

During the 2015 Ashes, former Australia wicket-keeper and reputed commentator Ian Healy blamed wives and girlfriends for Australia’s dismal showing. On this tour, reports of an alleged bust-up between the wives of Michael Clarke and David Warner surfaced. After Healy’s remarks, Warner’s wife Candice Falzon had reiterated the importance of families on a long tour.

“I think a lot of them would be very unhappy if their kids and their partners weren’t here. There’s a lot of things we do behind the scenes that people don’t know to help get the boys on the field,” she had said.