​BCCI seeks Ajit Agarkar replacement: Explaining how new selector can trump Pragyan Ojha for India Chief Selector role originally appeared on Cricket News.
Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.KEY TAKEAWAYS:The BCCI has invited applications for one vacant seat on the Men’s Selection Committee, with the window open until October 14.Per the board’s zonal rotation policy, the new member will come from the West Zone, the zone Ajit Agarkar represented.If the chosen candidate has played more Tests for India than Pragyan Ojha’s 24, they could leapfrog him to become chief selector.BCCI opens applications for Ajit Agarkar’s vacant selector seatThe BCCI has formally invited applications for one position on its Men’s Selection Committee, confirming in a media advisory dated October 6 that the vacancy follows Ajit Agarkar’s exit from the panel. The board has set the deadline for submissions at 5:00 p.m. IST on October 14.The eligibility bar is familiar: a minimum of 7 Tests, or 30 First-Class matches, or 10 ODIs plus 20 First-Class games, with a mandatory five-year gap since retirement. Shortlisted applicants will then be called in for personal interviews before a final call is made. Journalist Vikrant Gupta added further context to the process.Applications sought for Ajit Agarkar’s replacement candidate. Will be from the West Zone, and if the selected candidate has played more than Pragyan Ojha’s 24 Tests, he becomes the chairman. Else Pragyan will be the chairman— Vikrant Gupta (@vikrantgupta73) October 6, 2026He noted that the incoming selector must represent the same zone as Agarkar, and that the candidate ultimately selected will directly decide who chairs the committee.MORE: India T20I record under Laxman vs record under GambhirWhy should Ajit Agarkar’s replacement be specifically from the West Zone?The BCCI’s selection committee runs on a strict zonal structure, with one representative from each of the North, South, East, West, and Central zones. Agarkar, a Mumbai cricketer, occupied the West Zone seat for his entire tenure as chairman, so his departure leaves that specific regional slot empty rather than a free-for-all opening.Under this system, the board cannot simply pick any eligible former cricketer; the replacement must hail from a West Zone association such as Mumbai, Gujarat, Saurashtra, Baroda, Maharashtra, or Vidarbha.MORE: How many years after retirement can a cricketer become India’s chief selector? BCCI rules explainedIt is this same zonal math that puts Pragyan Ojha’s position under the microscope, since he already sits on the committee from the South Zone, and the incoming West Zone member’s own Test résumé will decide whether he keeps the chairman’s chair or hands it over.The other members in the committee include Shiv Sunder Das (Central Zone), who has played 23 Tests, R.P. Singh (Central/North Zone) who has played 14 Tests and Ajay Ratra (North Zone), who has played six Tests for the country.I