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Over the last two years, cutting across formats, Indian cricket has seen several transitions. The biggest off-the-field change happened on Monday, with former India spinner Pragyan Ojha officially taking over as the chairman of selectors from Ajit Agarkar. Ramesh Powar, the former Mumbai off-spinner, joined from the West Zone to complete the five-member panel. With an important 12 months coming up, including the ICC 50-over World Cup — for which India have to put together a strong squad — Ojha’s selection panel has weighty judgements to make.

Not since Dilip Vengsarkar’s tenure has India had a chairman of selectors with a no-nonsense approach like Agarkar, a former Indian all-rounder. He was appointed when his predecessor Chetan Sharma resigned after being at the centre of a TV sting operation in which he spoke about internal happenings.

Agarkar’s arrival brought stability and transparency even as he took tough calls. During Agarkar’s term, India won back-to-back T20 World Cup titles, a Champions Trophy and reached the final of the 50-over World Cup in 2023.

Ojha takes over during a crucial period, with star batsmen in the twilight of their careers keen to play in next year’s World Cup. This may sound like a hypothetical question, but one Indian cricket may actually face in six months. Should Rohit Sharma struggle to score runs in the ODIs, will Ojha be open to dropping the former India captain? Rohit retaining his place in the ODI team despite the selectors’ decision to drop him in July didn’t go down well with Agarkar, who chose not to extend his contract. There was a difference of opinion between the BCCI and Agarkar about Rohit’s future. It was Ojha who communicated the selector’s decision to Rohit.

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The question around Rohit isn’t without merit. He may have scored runs in the recent outings, but the 50-over World Cup is still a year away. Even here, Agarkar has set a precedent. He had included Shubman Gill in the T20I setup six months before the T20 World Cup. But then dropped Gill at the eleventh hour when he was going through a lean patch and selected Ishan Kishan in his place.

Will Ojha be prepared to make such calls or even float the idea to his colleagues? Since joining the selection panel last year, Ojha now knows where the Indian team stands across formats. The T20I team is settled for now, the Test squad is taking shape, but it is the ODI outfit that needs all the attention. Handing Gill, the team he intends to lead at Cape Town against Australia in the World Cup opener, should be Ojha’s priority.

“Team first & Team ahead, always.. I must say, History will be kinder to you,” India head coach Gautam Gambhir had posted on X about Agarkar.

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