BCCI Reacts To Reports Of Ajit Agarkar Seeking Extension As Chief Selector

Indian cricket team chief selector Ajit Agarkar has not requested the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to extend his tenure until the 2027 ODI World Cup, according to a report by PTI. A BCCI official completely rubbished reports claiming that Agarkar had a discussion with the board, stating that he "doesn't need to seek an extension." Agarkar joined the BCCI's selection committee as chairman in 2023, and since then, India has won the T20 World Cup 2024, Champions Trophy 2025, and T20 World Cup 2026. "The selection panel is a sub-committee of the BCCI, and the selectors' contract runs until September this year," a senior BCCI official privy to developments told PTI.

"Ajit's contract ends in September, and after that, the BCCI secretary and Ajit will have to decide whether he will continue until next year's ODI World Cup. A senior selector can continue up to four years as per the constitution, and he doesn't need to seek an extension," he added.

The ODI World Cup is still a year away but India's 20-odd probables have already been earmarked and the five national selectors will keep an eye on these players during the IPL starting March 28, a top BCCI source told PTI on Friday.

The Ajit Agarakar-led panel comprises SS Das, RP Singh, Ajay Ratra and Pragyan Ojha. The World Cup is to be co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia in October and November of 2027.

The panel members are expected to be present for matches at their respective bases while tracking the other games on TV. IPL begins with defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru taking on Sunrisers Hyderabad in Bengaluru.

While Agarkar is Mumbai-based, Das is a Kolkata resident. RP Singh and Ratra reside in the National Capital Region, and Ojha is expected to watch the his share of the IPL games in Bengaluru and Hyderabad.

"The BCCI is looking at each selector watching at least one game per week which covers five games per week from the venue. Else obviously they can track on TV," the official said.

It is understood that with the 2028 T20 World Cup and, prior to that, the Olympics in the same year, this IPL will be more about tracking the performance of those 20-odd players who are going to be in the mix for the 50-over World Cup.

The selectors are not expected to look at any breakout IPL star for the ODI World Cup.

The core 50-over specialists are all known and their performance and fitness will be tracked during this year's IPL.

It is reliably learnt that pacer Harshit Rana will take considerable time to recover and the four other fast bowlers for ODIs will be Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh along with all-rounder Hardik Pandya.

(With PTI inputs)

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