'Yuvraj would remain concerned. It affected his focus': Hazel Keech backs BCCI family rule after Virat Kohli's criticism
Yuvraj Singh's wife Hazel Keech commented on how he used to be distracted if she was attending matches, in response to Virat Kohli's recent comments.
The BCCI’s mandate regarding the amount of time players’ families can spend with them while on overseas tours has been in the news in the wake of comments made by Virat Kohli. Despite India’s recent Champions Trophy success, the heavy loss in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy led to new rules being set about how much time a player can spend with their family while representing the team abroad.
Despite Kohli’s comments on the matter at a recent RCB event, Hazel Keech, the wife of Kohli’s former teammate Yuvraj Singh, spoke in support of this new ruleset. Keech explained how it is a decision beneficial for not just the team, but also the players.
“I can understand when Yuvi was playing international cricket, moving from one tournament to another, and he would be away for a long time," Keech said to ANI. “For families with small children, it was difficult to be apart for so long.”
“But when I used to watch his matches, Yuvi would always be concerned about me, which affected his focus on the game,” explained the actress. “So, allowing families to join for a limited time is beneficial in both ways."
Kohli's perspective on having family by his side
Previously, Yuvraj himself has also spoken about how he once got distracted when a former partner arrived to watch a match unannounced. However, while Yuvraj holds this standard, Kohli explained his own perspective on how having family around was a positive for him.
“If you ask any player, do you want your family to be around you all the time? You’ll be like, yes. I don’t want to go to my room and just sit alone and sulk,” Kohli had explained at an RCB event this week.
“I want to be able to be normal. And then you can really treat your game as something that is a responsibility. You finish that responsibility, and you come back to life,” said the former Indian captain.
Kohli has prioritised his family over the Indian team on occasion in the past, such as taking paternity leaves during the tour of Australia in 2020-21 for the birth of his daughter with wife Anushka Sharma. He also sat out of the home series against England in 2024 to spend time with his family after the birth of his son.
While Kohli seems to be at odds with the BCCI and its higher-ups regarding this decision, it is a confrontation that will be on the back-burner while focus shifts to the IPL. Kohli is set to figure in the opening game of the 2025 season, playing for RCB against KKR at the Eden Gardens.
