The BCCI has handed Bengal leg-spinner Rohit Yadav an immediate two-year ban for age fraud, removing him from the India U-19 squad just weeks before the home series against Australia.
Rohit’s date of birth changed four times across official records. The BCCI investigation found no concrete evidence of his actual date of birth. Total discrepancy: 27 months.
| Record | Year of Birth | Source |
|---|---|---|
| CAB registration | 2007 | Initial registration (UP address) |
| Aadhaar update, 2017 | 2006 | Aadhaar card |
| Aadhaar, 2020 | 2006 | No change |
| Aadhaar update, 2021 | 2009 | Aadhaar card |
| Other birth certificates | 2007, 2009, 2010 | Multiple documents |
The timing makes this worse. Rohit had just returned from Sri Lanka, where he took 4/49 in the 2nd Youth Test in Colombo to spin India to a 211-run win and a 1-0 series victory. He was named in both the One-Day and Multi-Day squads for the Australia U-19 series in Rajkot and Ahmedabad. The ban wiped all of it. The BCCI confirmed a replacement would be announced.
What cameras and scorecards recorded was a promising leg-spinner delivering under pressure in foreign conditions. What they did not record is whether the bowlers he outperformed in trials, the ones who did not make the squad, were two years younger than him.
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The Bengal Crackdown
Rohit is not an isolated case. The Cricket Association of Bengal has barred 65 cricketers from registration and transfers for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 domestic seasons over documentation and age-related discrepancies.
The biggest name on that list is Ravi Kumar, the left-arm pacer who took 4/34 in the 2022 U-19 World Cup final against England. His age discrepancy: 45 months. He played across U-19, U-23, and senior squads with invalid records.
The worst case is not even close to cricket. Arun Kumar Chaurasiya fudged his age by 115 months, nearly 10 years, to play U-19 cricket in the 2023-24 season.
| Player | Discrepancy | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Arun Kumar Chaurasiya | 115 months | U-19 |
| Mahipal Yadav | 97 months | U-19 |
| Prabhat Maurya | 57 months | U-19/U-23 |
| Ravi Kumar | 45 months | U-19/U-23/Senior |
| Rohit Yadav | 27 months | U-19 |
Insider Read
Age fraud at U-19 level is not a paperwork error. It is a physical advantage. The difference between a 15-year-old and a 17-year-old in wrist strength, stamina, and body development is significant. A leg-spinner with two extra years of physical maturity has control and revolutions that younger spinners are still building. He is not competing on talent alone. He is competing on biology.
The system allowed Rohit to move from Uttar Pradesh to Bengal, change his documents multiple times, tour Sri Lanka with India, and get selected for another series before anyone flagged it. Every spot he held belonged to someone who played by the rules.
BCCI’s Stance on Age Fraud
The BCCI adopted strict anti-age-fraud measures in August 2020, introducing a mandatory two-year ban for anyone caught submitting falsified birth documents.
“Those who do not voluntarily disclose their misdemeanour will be punished heavily and will be banned for two years.”
Sourav Ganguly, BCCI President, August 2020
“Age fraud is a serious matter and is detrimental to the health of the sport. Many youngsters who are supposed to be playing in a particular age group fail to make it owing to age fraud.”
Rahul Dravid, Head of Cricket at NCA, August 2020
Rohit Yadav was reportedly unavailable for comment.
