NEW DELHI: There’s ambiguity around the composition of the BCCI’s national selection committee following former chief Ajit Agarkar’s decision not to continue. The deadline for applications to fill the West Zone vacancy ended on Wednesday with former India wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel, who was widely tipped to be Agarkar’s replacement, choosing not to apply for the job.
Parthiv’s decision to opt out has given rise to speculation that the head of the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE), VVS Laxman, may have a greater say in selection affairs, with Pragyan Ojha continuing as the interim chairman of the selection committee. With the ODI World Cup less than a year away, will the BCCI choose to continue with the two?
“BCCI would have preferred continuity with Agarkar staying on till the World Cup, but things didn’t go as expected. If a new chairman of selection committee comes in, there’s a chance his vision could be different from the ones working now. So, the board will have to gauge the vision of the new selector,” a BCCI source said, adding, “With Laxman’s growing influence, the board may let things remain the way they are at present.”
It will be interesting to see if the board takes more time to find a suitable candidate for the chief selector’s role. Or else, it is likely it will proceed with candidates to just fill up the spot for a representative from the west zone.
According to sources, the BCCI prefers ‘big’ names with a considerable amount of international cricket behind them to take up important positions. TOI has learnt that the board has become flexible in its pay policy to rope in the big names.
Since RP Singh and Pragyan Ojha joined the selection committee in Sept last year, BCCI’s expenses on selection committees exceeded the annual budget by Rs 3 crore to Rs 17.45 crore. Interestingly, the board has reserved a budget of Rs 19.35 cr for 2026-27, marking an increase of another Rs 2 cr. That implies BCCI has increased the budget for the selection committees by Rs 5 cr.
TOI understands that the board had reached out to a couple of former cricketers who have played close to 100 Tests, but they declined the offer. It is learnt that recent appointments in the men’s selection committee have happened with candidates negotiating their salaries.
The BCCI has to also deliberate if it wants to continue with SS Das as a selector since he will complete four years in the job in Dec. Sources said that there’s a chance that the board will let Das continue till the World Cup.
VVS to have bigger say?
Parthiv’s decision to opt out has given rise to speculation that the head of the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE), VVS Laxman, may have a greater say in selection affairs, with Pragyan Ojha continuing as the interim chairman of the selection committee. With the ODI World Cup less than a year away, will the BCCI choose to continue with the two?
“BCCI would have preferred continuity with Agarkar staying on till the World Cup, but things didn’t go as expected. If a new chairman of selection committee comes in, there’s a chance his vision could be different from the ones working now. So, the board will have to gauge the vision of the new selector,” a BCCI source said, adding, “With Laxman’s growing influence, the board may let things remain the way they are at present.”
It will be interesting to see if the board takes more time to find a suitable candidate for the chief selector’s role. Or else, it is likely it will proceed with candidates to just fill up the spot for a representative from the west zone.
Board willing to increase budget to rope in big names
According to sources, the BCCI prefers ‘big’ names with a considerable amount of international cricket behind them to take up important positions. TOI has learnt that the board has become flexible in its pay policy to rope in the big names.
Since RP Singh and Pragyan Ojha joined the selection committee in Sept last year, BCCI’s expenses on selection committees exceeded the annual budget by Rs 3 crore to Rs 17.45 crore. Interestingly, the board has reserved a budget of Rs 19.35 cr for 2026-27, marking an increase of another Rs 2 cr. That implies BCCI has increased the budget for the selection committees by Rs 5 cr.
TOI understands that the board had reached out to a couple of former cricketers who have played close to 100 Tests, but they declined the offer. It is learnt that recent appointments in the men’s selection committee have happened with candidates negotiating their salaries.
Will SS Das continue after Dec?
The BCCI has to also deliberate if it wants to continue with SS Das as a selector since he will complete four years in the job in Dec. Sources said that there’s a chance that the board will let Das continue till the World Cup.