Powar appointed men's national selector; Ojha to serve as chair

Ramesh Powar has been included in the India men's senior selection committee from the West Zone. The committee will now be chaired by Pragyan Ojha.

The BCCI's cricket advisory committee, comprising Ashok Malhotra and Jatin Paranjape, picked Powar to fill the vacancy in the committee after chief selector Ajit Agarkar's term ended on October 4, ahead of Wasim Jaffer, among others.

Powar, an offspinner from Mumbai, played two Tests and 31 ODIs between 2004 and 2007 and, after retirement in 2015, served as the head coach of the India women's team in two separate stints - when they won an Asia Cup title as well as a Commonwealth Games silver medal - and also coached Mumbai and Gujarat in domestic cricket. He has also been a bowling coach at the BCCI's Centre of Excellence.

The chair of the men's selection committee is appointed based on seniority in terms of international matches played, with Tests being given preference. That meant Ojha, a veteran of 24 Tests, took charge after Agarkar's exit. Ojha has been a member of the committee since September 2025, alongside Shiv Sunder Das, RP Singh and Ajay Ratra, and served as the interim head after Agarkar's term, leading the panel that selected the squads for the upcoming all-format tour of New Zealand.

Earlier this week, former India opener Jaffer confirmed that he had applied for the selector's spot. If appointed, he would have been the chair of the committee, having played 31 Tests.

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