BCCI opens applications for Agarkar's selection panel seat with a 14 October deadline

The BCCI has invited applications for the selection committee seat Ajit Agarkar has vacated, with the window closing at 5pm on 14 October

Four days after Ajit Agarkar's term as chairman of India's senior men's selection committee ended, the BCCI has advertised the vacancy he leaves behind.

The notice went up on 6 October. It covers one position on the five-man panel and closes at 5pm IST on 14 October, with applications submitted through a link the board has provided and shortlisted candidates called for personal interviews.

It does not mention Agarkar by name, and it does not say that whoever takes the seat will chair the committee. Pragyan Ojha is doing that job on an interim basis.

A seat advertised four days after the term ended

Agarkar took charge in July 2023 and completed his term on 4 October, having chosen not to seek an extension.

Reports in India place that decision around the board's annual general meeting on 18 September. No account of his exit describes it as a removal.

The board has set out no public timetable for appointing a permanent chairman beyond the closing date, and the advertisement is for a member of the committee rather than for the chair.

What the board is asking for

Applicants must have played a minimum of seven Tests, 30 first-class matches, or 10 ODIs and 20 first-class matches.

They must also have retired from the game at least five years ago, and anyone who has served on a BCCI cricket committee for a cumulative five years is ineligible.

The job description runs well past picking teams. It lists scouting and assessing players through domestic and international matches, attending team meetings, and travelling to watch cricket as required.

It also asks for quarterly evaluation reports on the team's performance for the BCCI's Apex Council, media briefings on selection when the board requests them, and appointing the captain in each format.

Ojha in the chair in the meantime

The committee is down to four until the seat is filled: Ojha, Shiv Sundar Das, Ajay Ratra and RP Singh.

Ojha, a former India left-arm spinner, chaired the meeting on 6 October that named the T20I squad for the tour of New Zealand.

That squad, captained by Shreyas Iyer, opens a five-match series in Christchurch on 22 October and finishes in Hamilton on 1 November.

The ODI and Test squads for the same tour are still to be named, which leaves the next piece of senior selection to whichever panel is sitting by then.

Three ICC titles in three years

Agarkar's panel oversaw the 2024 T20 World Cup win, the 2025 Champions Trophy and the successful defence of the T20 World Cup this year.

India also reached the 2023 ODI World Cup final in his first months in the role, won the Asia Cup twice and took Asian Games gold in 2023 and 2026.

His own playing career ran to 26 Tests, 191 ODIs and four T20Is, and he was part of the India squad that won the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007.

He still holds the record for the fastest fifty by an India batter in ODI cricket, set against Zimbabwe in 2000, and bowled India to a Test win at Adelaide in 2003.

A farewell from the head coach

Gautam Gambhir marked the departure with a post on 7 October that opened "Dear Ajit Bhai, an absolute honour to work with you" and credited the three ICC trophies to Agarkar's conviction that the team came first.

It closed with a line that was widely picked up in India: "History will be kinder to you."

The board thanked him publicly for his contribution before opening the search for a replacement, three years on from the appointment that put him in the chair.

Applications close at 5pm on 14 October, after which the shortlist will be interviewed for the one vacant seat on India's senior men's selection committee.

Catch the match live updates, highlights, and full match coverage on CricRadio. Get fast, accurate, and ad-free updates throughout the game. Download the CricRadio app from the Play Store to stay connected. You can also get the live scores of cricket series directly on the CricRadio website for real-time coverage.