How is Agni Chopra eligible to play MLC in America despite BCCI restrictions? Explained

Upcoming Indo-American cricketer Agni Chopra was recently seen in the ongoing Major League Cricket (MLC) tournament, which is taking place in the United States of America (USA). Fans and experts are curious about how the young cricketer was eligible to play the tournament despite the strict rules by the BCCI.

The news has made headlines since Chopra was one of the upcoming stars in the domestic scene with an incredible first-class cricket record while representing Mizoram. It turns out that the son of famous Bollywood filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra was exempt from the rules regarding Indian players participating in overseas T20 tournaments since he was born in Michigan, Detroit, and does not hold an Indian passport. The 26-year-old left-handed batter was part of the IPL 2025 mega auction, but ended up getting unsold. Chopra even revealed in a recent interview that he would have applied for a passport if he had been bought in the auction.

“I would have still applied for an Indian passport and stayed if I had been picked in the Indian Premier League, but [I am] looking forward to my time in America now,” he said previously as quoted by TOI.

Chopra’s domestic records and performances

26-year-old Agni Chopra came into the limelight during the 2023-24 Ranji Trophy season, where he scored 939 runs in 12 innings at an average of 78.25. This was the most runs any batter had scored that season. He has played a total of 11 first-class games, 12 List-A games, and 16 T20 games in his career. The youngster holds a mind-boggling average of 94.94 in First Class, 24.91 in the List A, and 30.13 in T20s.

Though his domestic record has been great, the same could not be said about the first two matches he has played in the MLC for MI New York, where he has achieved low scores of 5 and 8 in the tournament while opening the batting for the inaugural champions. He would want to contribute more in the remainder matches of the tournament for, as MI happens to be his favourite franchise since childhood.