It is learned that Agarkar had sounded out the BCCI in the recent months, too, to gauge whether the board wanted him to continue in his role until the 2027 World Cup.
Agarkar’s panel also played a crucial role in the appointment of Shubman Gill as captain in both the Test and ODI formats last year.
Earlier this year Agarkar’s panel collectively agreed to appoint Shreyas Iyer as India’s T20I captain replacing Suryakumar Yadav, who had led India to the T20 World Cup title in March.
Agarkar’s panel had also started work on the 2027 World Cup, which will be played in Africa next October-November, agreeing to look beyond Rohit Sharma after India’s tour of England in July. The decision was conveyed to Rohit but the senior India opener is part of the squad for the home ODI series against West Indies starting from September 27.
Agarkar headed the selection meeting earlier this week to pick squads for the West Indies white-ball series as well as the Irani Trophy which starts from October 1.
While Saikia was reluctant to show his hand on Friday, the BCCI is aware it needs to take a decision on Agarkar soon, including appointing a new chief selector considering India are scheduled to travel mid-October for a full tour of New Zealand. That tour starts with five T20Is followed by five ODIs and two Tests. Prior to that, India A will be playing two unofficial Tests as part of the shadow tour in New Zealand.
IPL 2027 auction in December
“We have also discussed about engaging and activating our state associations to give support to physically-challenged cricketers. The BCCI will complete 100 years in December 2027, so we will do centenary celebrations from December 2027 for one year,” Saikia added.
Umpires and match referee’s fees revised for the first time since 2017-18
“We have categorised the umpires into four – A, B, C and D, and restructured the fee structure of the match referees also,” he said. “All the umpires’ posting will be as per merit. We have an assessing team under the umpire’s board. Umpires will be given assignments according to their merit – whether it is knockouts or important games.
“After every season, there will be a system of relegation and upgradation. Ten umpires at the end of every season will be promoted, and ten will be relegated. This will make them very alert throughout the season, and that will ultimately help the game of cricket, because some players’ futures depend on decisions of the umpires. They have to be very competent and alert.”
Other selection committee appointments expected
The BCCI will review the applications it has received for the junior selection committee for men’s cricket and make an appointment in the next 10-15 days. The board had advertised for five positions in the committee after the tenure of the S Sharath-led panel had ended last month. The deadline to submit applications was September 5.
“We have received a very large number of applicants, and we are shortlisting them,” Saikia said. “After that we will give it to our cricket committee, who will be the competent authority to select the selectors for the junior selection committee. We are trying to complete it in the next 10-15 days.”
Nagraj Gollapudi is news editor at Cricinfo; S Sudarshanan is a sub-editor at Cricinfo
