A video circulating on social media shows BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar ignoring handshake requests with young fans outside of the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
India's chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar officially announced the ODI and T20I squads for the upcoming tour of Australia during a press conference on Saturday (October 4), moments after India's win against West Indies in the first Test.
And a video on X shows Agarkar meeting the fans outside, and taking pictures. And as the former India player took the photos, he rejected multiple requests for a handshake with fans, even when a child repeatedly extended his hand for a handshake. In fact, Agarkar was also seen posing in such a way to avoid any body contact with any of the fans.
Although a fan on X posted the video criticizing Agarkar, many of the netizens defended the chief selector, citing hygiene factors.
Meet chief selector Ajit Agarkar after announcing the ODI team, he did not shake hands with fans outside the ground. He was careful to avoid any body contact with them and even refrained from shaking hands with kids.☹️
- 𝐑𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐢𝐢⁴⁵ (@rushiii_12) October 4, 2025
Why this much arrogance? pic.twitter.com/tQoaaHKkEo
'I wouldn't call that arrogance. Do you even know what hygiene means?' a fan wrote.
Ajit Agarkar picks India Squad for Australia Tour
In a major shake-up, Agarkar revealed that Shubman Gill has been named as the new ODI captain, taking over from Rohit Sharma, who has been removed from the leadership role but remains in the squad alongside veteran Virat Kohli.
Agarkar detailed the decision-making process, stating, "It is practically impossible to have three different captains across formats. You want to take a call reasonably early to give the new guy a good chance" and underscored that the change aligns with long-term planning towards the 2027 World Cup.
He confirmed that Rohit Sharma had been informed about the captaincy change and that the transition is in the best interest of the team and head coach Gautam Gambhir.
Explaining the surprise exclusion of Sanju Samson despite his recent strong performances, Agarkar clarified that Sanju Samson is regarded a top order batsman in ODIs. Given that KL Rahul is the current wicket-keeper and he bats in the middle order, usually at number five, the selectors want a like-for-like replacement, and for that, Dhruv Jurel was picked ahead of the Kerala batter.
