Virat Kohli is likely to train with the Delhi team in Rajkot ahead of the Elite Group D match against Saurashtra starting January 23. The BCCI has mandated all players to play domestic cricket to make themselves available for national selection. While Virat is yet to confirm his availability for the fixture, it is highly likely that he will train with the team ahead of the Ranji fixture, according to a report in Cricbuzz.

If Virat makes himself available to play the Ranji match, it will be the first time since 2012 that he will represent the team in the Ranji Trophy. Along with Virat, Rohit Sharma too is yet to confirm availability for the Ranji game for Mumbai, however, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and Rishabh Pant will be featuring for their respective teams.

India's poor performance in Australia and the preceding Test series against New Zealand have prompted BCCI to make strict player guidelines. According to the 10 point diktat released by the BCCI, domestic cricket is mandatory for players to be eligible to play for India. Also, the board has put a cap of two weeks for families to stay with the players on overseas tours, besides imposing restrictions on personal staff and commercial ad shoots.

Non-compliance to the guidelines could attract strict action from the BCCI, including cuts in annual contracts and a ban from IPL.

"Any exceptions or deviations must be pre-approved by the Chairman of the Selection Committee and Head Coach. Non-compliance may lead to disciplinary action as deemed appropriate by the BCCI," the Board policy states.

"Additionally, the BCCI reserves the right to take disciplinary action against a player which may include sanction against the concerned player from participating in all BCCI conducted tournaments including the Indian Premier League; and deduction from retainer amount/match fees under BCCI Player contract," it warns.

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