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Dubai: Have you met the ‘First lady’ of Indian Cricket? Tweeps have and they are not happy.

Yesterday, the Board of Cricket Control (BCCI) posted a picture on twitter of the Indian Cricket team with officials of the Indian High Commission in London and social media users were quick to find fault with it.

Why? Because actress Anushka Sharma was seen taking centre stage at a meeting she had no “business being at” according to tweeps. The picture received 21,000 likes and more than 3,000 comments.

The photograph went viral and was shared numerous times by users who made fun of the board and the actress. People even called her the “First Lady” of Indian cricket.

Sharma is married to Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli, but fans did not see this as a good enough reason for her to be a part of the picture.

Ironically? In the same photo, a fan pointed out that the Vice Captain of the team was standing at the back.

The picture sparked a debate on social media and people were teeming with questions. One fan asked why the wives of other cricketers were not invited, while others discussed how India is celebrity-obsessed.

@mishra_nikhar said: “@BCCI should not give this much importance to any 1 apart from the players. Sachin was and will be the greatest and respectable player and married also but never showed off like this. Loving your wife is ok but you don’t need to show this everywhere.”

And @Karannanda echoed the same: “It’s pretty unfair that she is being included in the official photograph while it’s only for team members. I believe other players’ wives are also traveling with them so why is the only one in the pic? Breaking the protocol.”

Some even joked about the situation and wondered when Sharma would “join the squad” and play in the coming test match against team England.

@NishNishantkr said: “Why @BCCI allows someone’s wife at official tour.... Please confirm if your team is at work or on honeymoon?”

Another tweep @jaydeep_jhala said: “So I guess all other members are bachelors...”

This picture comes as a surprise especially since the BCCI came out with a new rule. According to a report by fortnightly magazine India Today: “They had barred the wives and girlfriends of the Indian cricket team players from accompanying their respective partners until the end of the third Test against England.”

These rules have been broken by players a few times, according to reports.

While most tweeps were upset, some even defended Sharma as she is “more than Kohli’s wife”.

@SastaLoha said: “Because unlike the others, Anushka Sharma’s only identity is not “Virat Kohli’s wife”, she is an ambassador for Indian Cinema in the foreign countries… you guys seem to forget that. It’s not a BCCI team meeting anyway.”

@Pawan_manjul replied to a tweet and said: “Even wives of world leaders accompany them on global summits and tours. You won’t understand this....”