Ajit Agarkar’s contract not renewed? BCCI issues official statement on the matter
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Recently, the India National Cricket Team's Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar had his contract renewed for another year. This move was reportedly made keeping in mind the need for continuity for the 2027 ODI World Cup.
The move has sparked discussions because, despite the team's success, Agarkar and his actions as Chief Selector remain a point of contention among fans.
There was also speculation over whether or not Ajit Agarkar was eligible for this renewal, but BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla has now cleared the air.
"These calls are taken keeping the larger interests of Indian cricket in mind": Shukla
Shukla was talking to TOI and said that such decisions were taken by the board's management by keeping Indian cricket in mind.
“Such decisions rest with the BCCI management. These are collective calls taken at the appropriate time, keeping the larger interests of Indian cricket in mind. When the time comes, the board will take a considered view," Shukla said.
For now, though, Ajit Agarkar has had his contract renewed, keeping him at the helm for another year.
“Agarkar didn’t seek extension. A selector can continue up to four years in either junior or senior selection committee and five years cumulatively across both committees. Hence, Ajit’s contract is being renewed and not extended," a senior BCCI source said.
Ajit Agarkar as Chief Selector
Agarkar took over as Chief Selector in July 2023. Under his tenure, India finished as runners-up in the ODI World Cup at home that year. Since then, though, the 'Men In Blue' have gone on to win the T20 World Cup twice (2024 and 2026) and won a Champions Trophy (2025).
India have also managed to win the Asia Cup twice - in the ODI format in 2023, and in the T20 format in 2025.
Despite the success in limited-overs cricket, the Test team has seen some struggles since Agarkar took over. In 2024, India lost a home Test series after 12 years when New Zealand completed a 3-0 whitewash. Following that, India lost the Test series in Australia and gave away the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, having regained it 7 years ago.
India also lost the Test series to South Africa at home in 2025, losing both the Tests in that series. In 2025-26, India also lost an away ODI series in Australia and a home ODI series against New Zealand.
In the boardroom, though, Ajit Agarkar has been known to take one tough call after another. In 2024, the selection committee led by him appointed Suryakumar Yadav as India's full-time T20I captain following Rohit Sharma's retirement from the format. He defied expectations that the role would go to Hardik Pandya.
Agarkar also oversaw the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma from Test cricket in 2025, and in May 2025, he named Shubman Gill the skipper of the Test team. In October 2025, despite Rohit's overwhelming success as captain in ODIs, Agarkar and the selection committee handed the captaincy of that team to Shubman Gill.
Gill was named the vice-captain of the Indian T20I team, but both he and Shreyas Iyer were snubbed for selection for the T20 World Cup in 2026, with Ishan Kishan preferred.
Ajit Agarkar, as Chief Selector, was criticised for not attending domestic cricket matches and instead travelling with the Indian team to foreign locations like Australia and Dubai.
Team India's next match
Following his contract renewal, the next assignment for Ajit Agarkar as Chief Selector would be to select the team for the one-off Test against Afghanistan in June.
Following that, India will embark on a white-ball tour to England in July.
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