“Thank you for everything”- Gautam Gambhir's emotional message for Ajit Agarkar's exit as chief selector

With Ajit Agarkar’s tenure as the BCCI senior men’s selection committee coming to an end after more than three years where the national side earned incredible success despite going through so much debates in selection, the Indian men’s team’s head coach, Gautam Gambhir, pens down an emotional message for Agarkar.  

Agarkar, who took the charge in July 2023, was part of an era in which the blue brigade reached four finals of the white-ball format and lost only the 2023 ODI World Cup final, besides winning the two T20 World Cups in 2024 and 2026 along with the Champions Trophy 2025.

What did Gautam Gambhir say about Ajit Agarkar's exit?

Gambhir shared an emotional message for Agarkar after the latter’s exit as he highlighted the trophies that they won during their time together. He claimed that history would be kinder to Agarkar, besides thanking him for all of his contributions.

“Dear Ajit Bhai, an absolute honour to work with you. Those 3 ICC trophies are a testimony to your conviction: Team first & Team ahead, always. I must say, History will be kinder to you. Thank you for everything. My heartfelt wishes for your future endeavours!!” Gambhir wrote on his X account.

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The head coach has been part of the T20 World Cup 2026 winning side along with the Champions Trophy 2025. One of the most debatable decisions was to drop Suryakumar Yadav from the T20Is side just after he won the T20 World Cup in February this year.

BCCI seeks applications for selection committee: Who will replace Agarkar?

Agarkar’s tenure was defined by several decisions that gained attention. He pointed to Hardik Pandya’s fitness as the reason for not giving him the captaincy of the T20Is, besides claiming that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are not confirmed for the ODI World Cup 2027 in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia.

Rinku Singh was not part of India’s T20 World Cup 2024 winning 15-member squad. Mohammad Siraj didn’t feature in the Champions Trophy 2025, while Mohammed Shami’s comeback has been held up, despite his strong performance in domestic cricket.

“Any person who has been a member of any Cricket Committee, as defined in the Memorandum of Association and Rules and Regulations of the BCCI, for a cumulative period of five years will not be eligible to be a member of the Men's Selection Committee.” The BCCI expressed this while seeking applications for the new chief selector.

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The board states that the candidates should have played a minimum of seven Tests, 30 first-class games, or 10 ODIs and 20 first-class games, along with the condition of having retired from the game at least five years ago.