‘Families are important…but it’s not a holiday,’ Gambhir backs BCCI rule that once irked Kohli, Rohit

Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir has backed a BCCI rule that once irked white-ball stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. After India’s horrid show Down Under, where not only did they lose the series (1-3) and a chance to seal the WTC Final 2025 ticket, but also copped with new set of guidelines laid by the board, including introducing a new rule that limits players’ family duration on away tours. While it's 14 days for longer tours that last for 45 days and beyond, the number reduces to just seven for shorter ones. Owing to this, several players, including Kohli and Rohit, reached out to the BCCI to put some relaxations on it.

The BCCI laid out these rules to ensure that the players maintain focus on cricket on all tours and stick together, not seeking an escape elsewhere. Kohli was among the high-profile names who expressed displeasure over this rule, saying he doesn’t want to head back to his room and sit and sulk without his family around.

Speaking with Cheteshwar Pujara during a special interview, Gambhir says the focus must remain on representing the country rather than being on a holiday.

"Families are important, but you've got to understand one thing. You are here for a purpose. It's not a holiday. You're here for a huge purpose. You've got very few people in that dressing room or in this tour that gets this opportunity to make the country proud.

“So yes, I'm not against not having families with us.

"It is important to have families, but if your focus is towards making our country proud and you have a much bigger role than any other thing, and you're committed to that goal, you're committed to that cause, I think everything else is fine. But for me, I think that cause and that goal is more important than any other thing,” Gambhir said.

India at Lord’s

Team India bowled first at Lord’s in the third Test against England. Dismissing both openers inside the first session, India had England’s back against the wall before Joe Root and Ollie Pope stitched a 109-run stand to bring the hosts back in the game.

Two quick wickets in the middle overs further dent their run, but England's deployment of an old-school approach saved them from any embarrassment as Root and Stokes ended the day with the scoreboard reading 251 for four.

While Stokes is batting on an unbeaten 32, Root was stranded at 99* on the other hand.