The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced that Ajit Agarkar, the former Indian fast bowler, will be the new Chairman of the Indian Senior Men’s Selection Committee. Agarkar was selected for the role after undergoing an interview for the vacant position in the committee.
The Cricket Advisory Committee, which includes Sulakshana Naik, Ashok Malhotra, and Jatin Paranjape, unanimously recommended Agarkar as the head of the selection panel.
The position of chief selector had been vacant since Chetan Sharma resigned in February following a sting operation conducted by a news channel.
According to the BCCI’s notification inviting applications for the role, the candidate must have played a minimum of seven Tests or 30 First-Class matches or 10 ODIs and 20 First-Class matches. Additionally, the candidate should have retired from the game at least five years prior.
Agarkar meets these criteria, having represented India in 26 Tests, 191 ODIs, and four T20Is, as well as having played 110 first-class matches, 270 List A games, and 62 T20 matches.
During his playing days, Agarkar achieved several notable records. He became the fastest to reach 50 ODI wickets, achieving the feat in just 23 matches.
He still holds the record for scoring the fastest half-century in ODIs for India, achieving it off 21 balls against Zimbabwe in 2000. Following his retirement from cricket, Agarkar served as the chief selector of the senior Mumbai team and was also involved in the coaching setup of the Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League.
Agarkar’s initial responsibility as Chairman of the selection committee will be to choose the T20I squad for the tour of West Indies, while the Test and ODI teams have already been selected by the panel led by interim chairman Shiv Sundar Das.
Prior to this appointment, Agarkar had previously served as the chief selector of the Mumbai domestic side from 2017 to 2019. He appeared before the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), consisting of former cricketers Ashok Malhotra, Sulakshana Naik, and Jatin Paranjape, for an interview.
The CAC recommended him for the chief selector position to the BCCI, leading to the official announcement by the board.
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