BCCI Extends Ajit Agarkar’s Contract Despite Selection Chaos in the Last 2 Years

Despite Ajit Agarkar's contract extension, the BCCI may look at India's performance at the 2025 Asia Cup in order to evaluate the selection panel.

BCCI Extends Ajit Agarkar’s Contract Despite Selection Chaos in the Last 2 Years

Team India chief selector Ajit Agarkar has reportedly be handed a one-year contract extension. (via Mint)

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The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has reportedly extended selection committee chairman Ajit Agarkar’s contract by a year, until June 2026. The board expressed satisfaction with Agarkar’s tenure, despite the chaos that has engulfed Indian cricket over the last two years. 

Appointed in July 2023, as the successor to former chief selector Chetan Sharma, ex-India all-rounder Ajit Agarkar had a distinguished career, playing over 200 matches for India from 1998 to 2007. He was a part of several victorious squads, including the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy and the inaugural 2007 ICC T20 World Cup, and was also on the team that finished as runners-up in the 2003 ODI World Cup.

A key figure for Mumbai in domestic cricket, Agarkar also represented KKR and DD in the IPL. Following a brief period as a commentator, he was appointed Chairman of the Selection Committee, and has now become the first chief selector to be granted a contract extension by the BCCI. His initial two-year term, which was scheduled to conclude this year, has been extended for another year, and is now set to last until June 2026.

According to a BCCI official, the contract extension was granted to Agarkar several months ago, before the 2025 IPL season. The official indicated the Indian men’s team won several titles during Ajit Agarkar’s tenure, which the board saw as a reason to reward him.

The Indian team, under Agarkar’s leadership, ended its 11-year drought for an ICC trophy, securing both the 2024 T20 World Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy within a single year. The report read:

Under his tenure the Indian team had won titles and had seen transition too. The BCCI had extended his contract till June 2026 and he had accepted the offer a few months back.

Ajit Agarkar’s tenure as chief selector has not been without its critics. He has been widely criticized for lack of transparency and for failing to provide consistent opportunities to young players. Many former cricketers and analysts have accused him of exhibiting bias towards certain players, particularly those with close ties to him or the team management, while overlooking several talented and in-form players.

Furthermore, Agarkar’s oversight of the tough transition period, which saw veterans like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retire from Tests and T20Is, has led to claims that he rushed the senior players out of the team.

With Agarkar’s contract now extended, the focus shifts to the remaining four selectors, Shiv Sunder Das, Subroto Banerjee, Ajay Ratra, and Sridharan Sharath. While the BCCI is reportedly satisfied with their work, there is speculation that Sharath may be replaced at the upcoming Annual General Meeting. 

Meanwhile, Ajit Agarkar has also been involved in the rise of Shubman Gill to a leadership role within the Indian team. With his contract secured, Agarkar will be tasked with selecting the squads for several major upcoming tournaments, the most significant of which is the 2026 T20 World Cup.

Ex-India Opener Blasts Ajit Agarkar for Puzzling Shreyas Iyer Omission from Asia Cup Squad

Former India captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth publicly criticized chief selector Ajit Agarkar for what he calls a puzzling justification for leaving Shreyas Iyer out of the 2025 Asia Cup squad. Despite his strong white-ball form and recent success, Iyer was not included in the 15-member team.

Srikkanth on Shreyas Iyer Ajit Agarkar
Ex-India opener K. Srikkanth slammed Ajit Agarkar for not picking Shreyas Iyer in Asia Cup squad. (via Newsbytes)

On his YouTube show, Srikkanth dismissed Agarkar’s explanation, which cited the difficulty of choosing from a large talent pool. Srikkanth argued that Iyer’s recent performance, scoring over 600 runs in the IPL and leading Punjab Kings to the final, made him an automatic choice. He went on to call Agarkar’s comments ‘nonsensical’, adding that the selector’s reasoning had left Iyer’s role on the team unclear.

For a player [Shreyas Iyer] who has performed so well, you are saying: ‘tell me who he will replace in the side’. I cannot understand this statement. It’s a nonsensical statement from [Ajit] Agarkar.

Srikkanth also pointed out that other in-form players were overlooked for the 2025 Asia Cup. The list includes Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2025 IPL Orange Cap winner Sai Sudharsan, Purple Cap winner Prasidh Krishna, and veteran spinner Yuzvendra Chahal.

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