Former Indian wicketkeeper batter Ajay Ratra was on Tuesday appointed as the newest member of the Ajit Agarkar-led men's selection committee, BCCI confirmed in a media statement. Ratra comes in for Mr Salil Ankola and will work alongside the other selectors.
"The Cricket Advisory Committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday named Mr Ajay Ratra as the newest member of the Men's Selection Committee headed by Mr Ajit Agarkar. Mr Ratra will replace Mr Salil Ankola in the Committee," BCCI wrote in a statement.
"Ratra, a former Indian wicketkeeper-batter, brings with him a wealth of experience and an impressive track record in both domestic and international cricket," the Indian board added.
Ratra joins the selection panel featuring Shiv Sundar Das, Subroto Banerjee, and Sridharan Sharath with Agarkar being the chief selector of the panel. The Indian Board had invited applications for one selector post after two selectors were from the same zone - west. Agarkar and Ankola were from the west zone and there was no selector from the north zone.
Ratra has been part of the Indian team in 6 Tests and 12 ODIs. He played first-class cricket for the domestic side Haryana, featuring in 90 First Class matches. Ratra scored nearly 4000 runs and affected 240 dismissals.
"As a selector, Mr. Ratra will work alongside the existing members of the selection committee to identify and support the next generation of cricketers who will represent India on the global stage. Ratra has an extensive coaching experience having worked as a Head Coach of Assam, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. He was also a part of the coaching staff of the Indian team during their ODI series in South Africa in 2023
"His insights will be instrumental to the committee in ensuring that the best talent is identified, nurtured, and given the opportunity to excel at the highest level," the Indian board added in its statement.
