Indian cricket faces a stern test in the coming months, with uncertainty around the futures of the veterans, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma after the latter was replaced by Shubman Gill as the ODI captain.
The ODI captaincy change comes just months after the same change took place in Tests ahead of the England tour as Sharma announced his retirement from the format.
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As Gill continues to grow his stature in Indian cricket, former England bowler Steve Harmison has made a startling remark over Ajit Agarkar's future as India's selector.
What did Steve Harmison say about Ajit Agarkar?
The former India and Mumbai bowler Agarkar assumed the responsibilities as the chairman of selectors in July 2023. He was initially given a two-year contract till 2025, which was later extended till June 2026.
While India won two Asia Cups (2023 and 2025) and ended their ICC title drought with the T20 World Cup 2024 and ICC Champions Trophy 2025, the former player has faced a lot of scrutiny from the fans and experts for how he has dealt with the seniors in the team.
Harmison, who has represented England in 63 Tests for 226 wickets, 58 ODIs for 76 wickets and two T20Is for a solitary wicket, has emerged as one of his newest critics and feels the Indian could end his tenure in a messy fashion.
"Unfortunately, I think there might be a messy end for Ajit Agarkar there. If anybody is going to win here, I think it is the former captains rather than the former all-rounder. But it all depends on if Agarkar is saying this just to fuel the fire of Kohli and Sharma, then fair enough. You put your cards on the table and see what comes," Steve Harmison said to TalkSport Cricket.
As things stand, Agarkar has refused to talk about the possibilities of the star duo playing the World Cup 2027 in his recent press conference.
While there have been reports that the upcoming Australia tour could be the end of their international careers, there is no official word from the BCCI sources about it as India looks to focus on the home T20 World Cup in 2026.
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