The Ajit Agarkar-led senior men’s selection committee could witness a minor rejig in the coming days with the BCCI inviting fresh applications for two positions on Friday.
It isn’t exactly clear which two zones will have new selectors, as no member of the current panel has exceeded the cumulative five-year-period rule that’s in place.
While Agarkar’s (West Zone) tenure is set to run until the 2026 T20 World Cup in February-March, and Ajay Ratra (North) only came on board in October 2024, changes are expected in two of the remaining three zones. The current five-member selection panel also comprises Shiv Sundar Das (Central), Subroto Banerjee (East) and S Sharath (South), alongside Agarkar and Ratra.
Former India wicketkeeper-batter SS Das, who joined the selection panel headed by Chetan Sharma, went on to briefly serve as interim chairman in the wake of Sharma’s ouster before Agarkar took over the position. Sharath, who joined as chairman of the junior panel in 2021, was subsequently promoted to the senior selection committee in 2023 while Bannerjee, meanwhile, joined the panel in early 2023.
The new applicants must have been retired from playing at least five years ago, and must have played a minimum of seven Tests or 30 first-class matches; or ten ODIs and 20 first-class matches. Additionally, they shouldn’t have been part of any cricket committee of the BCCI for a cumulative five years. The last date of applying for the posts has been set for September 10.
The women’s selection panel is also headed for an overhaul, with the tenure of the Neetu David-led committee expiring in September. The squad for the upcoming ICC Women’s ODI World Cup, chosen earlier this week, marked the panel’s final assignment. The BCCI has announced four vacancies in the women’s panel.
As of now, Shyama Shaw is the only member expected to continue, having joined the panel in 2023. The others — Neetu David, Aarti Vaidya, and Renu Margrate — will have to step down at the end of their tenure. Notably, the panel currently has no woman selector from the South Zone.
The national cricket board also advertised for one position in the junior selection panel, currently headed by former Karnataka wicketkeeper Thilak Naidu. The other members of that panel are Ranadeb Bose (East), Harvinder Singh Sodhi (North), Pathik Patel (West) and Krishen Mohan (Central). Naidu replaced Sharath after the latter was promoted to the senior selection panel.