The former India all-rounder remained mum on the subject, but a member of the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) confirmed the news. If chosen, Agarkar (45), who has represented India in 221 matches across all formats, could be the favorite for the position of chairman.
Agarkar’s interest in the selection committee position surfaced on the same day that the Delhi Capitals revealed their split with the former Mumbai head selector. For two years, Agarkar was the assistant coach for the Delhi IPL team. His contract was not renewed, according to franchise management.
The position of head selector has been vacant since Chetan Sharma quit in February following a television channel sting operation. In an ideal world, the prospective candidate would have hailed from the North Zone, as the outgoing chairman did, but the BCCI constitution is known to be unconstrained by zonal constraints when it comes to the formation of the selection committee.
“All five selectors can be from the same zone,” an MCA official explained. If Agarkar is appointed, there will be two Western selectors, one of whom being Salil Ankola, a member of the selection committee.
The age limit for the role is not specified in the BCCI advertisement requesting applicants for the position. Previously, an age restriction of 60 years was imposed. According to the BCCI notification, the applicant must have played at least seven Tests or 30 First-Class matches, or 10 ODIs and 20 First-Class matches. Most crucial, the applicant must have left the game at least five years ago.
The lack of an age requirement creates opportunity for fresh candidates, such Dilip Vengsarkar, a previous chairman (from 2006 to 2008). However, there has been no confirmation of his application because he declined to answer to a query. With the World Cup coming to India in less than three months, the BCCI appears to be looking for a visionary and high-profile candidate for the position of head selector.
The current selectors are Shiv Sundar Das (East), S Sharath (South), Subroto Banerjee (Central), and Ankola (West). The application period ends on June 30 (Friday), which implies the new selector/chief selector might be named as soon as next week.
