According to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), any Indian male cricketer who is centrally contracted, domestically active, or has represented India cannot play in any foreign franchise league unless they retire from all forms of Indian cricket and obtain a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the board. However, recently an Indian professional domestic cricketer, Agni Dev Chopra, has been seen playing in Major League Cricket (MLC), raising eyebrows and curiosity among cricket aficionados from all over the world.
In this article we will take a look at the reasons that made the Indian professional domestic cricketer Agni Dev Chopra play in Major League Cricket (MLC).
Explained: How an Indian Domestic Cricketer is Playing in Major League Cricket (MLC) Despite BCCI Ban
Who is Agni Dev Chopra?
The 26-year-old American-Indian professional cricketer Agni Dev Chopra is a left-handed batsman and right-arm off-break bowler who played for the Mizoram cricket team and also represented the Mumbai cricket team at Under-19 level as a skipper.
Despite having an extremely glorious career, Agni Dev Chopra had to leave his Indian cricket career to seek new teams as the BCCI bars non-passport holders from domestic cricket.
When did Agni Dev Chopra Join MLC?
As mentioned earlier, due to a longstanding policy by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), players who do not hold Indian passports are barred from participating in domestic cricket tournaments such as the Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy, and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, the former Indian professional domestic cricketer Agni Dev Chopra took the bold decision of opting for the US citizenship which eventually allowed him to qualify as a domestic player in Major League Cricket (MLC).
How is Agni Dev Chopra Playing in the MLC?
Born in Detroit, Michigan, Agni Dev Chopra never had an Indian passport and was a U.S. citizen by birth. Therefore, his eligibility to play as a domestic player in Major League Cricket (MLC) stemmed from his nationality.
The history of Indian cricket has witnessed numerous other infamous instances where legendary Indian cricketers including Yuvraj Singh and Unmukt Chand also faced difficulties in obtaining their Non-Objection Certificates from the board in order to play for the Toronto Nationals in the Global T20 in Canada in 2019 and the BBL in 2021/22, respectively.
