CHENNAI: Amidst the ongoing speculation over the future of the senior men's selection committee chair Ajit Agarakar, the office bearers of BCCI have been authorised to take call on the matter at the Annual General Meeting on Friday.
Agarkar's — who took over as chief selector months before the 2023 ODI World Cup — tenure is up for extension till next year with his contract getting over this month. The last few months have been about whether or not the former India all-rounder will get an extension and will he take it up if he does. And in this period, murmurs were doing rounds that the relationship between the chief selector and the board had strained. Agarkar not attending the BCCI review meeting, which was called on short notice, only added to it.
So much so that when the selection committee met on Wednesday to pick and announce the squad for the West Indies series, questions rose on whether it could be Agarkar's last meeting as the chief selector. One of the reasons argued in favour of his extension, among other things, was the continuity till the 2027 ODI World Cup. However, when Agarkar himself took charge months before the 2023 event in which India had a dream run to the final before losing to Australia, that could not be the only reason for his potential one-year extension.
While the issue of his extension was supposed to be discussed at the AGM on Friday, the general body, it is understood, decided to authorise the BCCI office bearers to take a call on the matter. Though there is no concrete take away from the meeting, reading between the lines, it should not come as a surprise should Agarkar's tenure come to an end this month.
Later in the day, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said that a decision will be taken in the next two weeks on Agarkar and the junior selection committee. "We still have 15 days to go. In 15 days, a long time in the world of cricket. We will take a decision in appropriate time," Saika told reporters in Mumbai. "We are trying to complete it within the next 10 to 15 days time to constitute the junior selection committee," he added.
Year-long centenary celebrations
During the AGM, the BCCI has also decided to celebrate its centenary anniversary in grand manner through the course of 2028. Formed on December 1, 1928 with RE Grant Govan as president and Anthony de Mello as secretary, the BCCI will complete 100 years in 2028.
Keeping that in mind, the board is planning to form a committee to plan the celebrations which are expected to begin as early as December 2027 and run throughout the year. One of suggestions raised at the meeting as a part of celebrations, it is understood, was a potential India vs Rest of the World match. The discussions were at the earliest stages and it remains to be seen how the board plans the celebrations.
Dhumal re-elected as IPL chair
Arun Singh Dhumal, meanwhile, was re-elected as the Indian Premier League Governing Council Chair unopposed. And same was the case with M Khairul Jamal Majumdar, who was also re-elected to IPL GC. "The General Body unanimously took a call to celebrate the upcoming 20th edition of IPL in 2027 in a grand way," BCCI said in a statement.
Reprieve for umpires, officials
The general body has approved an enhancement in pay structure for umpires and match referees and reclassification of the grades. A committee is likely to formed to finalise the details with umpires categories into different grades and pay scales.
