Reports | BCCI alone to take decisions about WAGs on tour

According to a report by Hindustan Times, the office-bearers of the BCCI and they alone will be vested with the powers to take decisions regarding WAGs (Wives and Girlfriends) of cricketers on tour. Earlier, during the World Cup, family members of players were only allowed to accompany them for fifteen days during the latter part of the tournament. 

Earlier, in the previous year, the coach and captain were allowed to approach the Committee of Administrators (CoA), to take such requests into consideration. “The authority to approve any visits from visitors outside the Visitor Period should vest with the Team Captain and Coach, and this should be reflected in the Family Clause of the Players’ Contracts,” the CoA had taken this decision in a meeting on May 21, last year. 

The aforementioned decision, that was taken last year, was opposed by CoA member Diana Edulji, who now welcomes the change. “These issues can become complicated in a team environment, and these decisions are best left for the administrators to take. The captain and the coach should be allowed to focus on cricket and the manager keeps tab of these things on tour. With the BCCI run by office-bearers again, they should take the call,” she said, reported HT.

However, this decision wasn’t taken well by many players and that has led to the transfer of authority to the office-bearers. 

“Any individual request [ from players about bringing WAGs on tour] will have to come through the office-bearers. It’s not a big matter, but this is clearly the best way to do it,” a top BCCI official told HT.

India have their next tour scheduled against New Zealand, starting January 24, and families will be allowed to accompany players for two or three weeks in the latter half of a tour.