Fact Check: Fire Ajit Agarkar and Gautam Gambhir, says Navjot Singh Sidhu? No, here’s the truth

Hyderabad: Following India’s back-to-back losses against Australia in Adelaide, a social media post began circulating claiming that former Indian cricketer and commentator Navjot Singh Sidhu criticised BCCI’s chief selector Ajit Agarkar and Team India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir.

The viral post shows a photo of Sidhu alongside Agarkar and Gambhir, with a text on it that reads, “If India wants to win the 2027 ODI World Cup, then BCCI should remove Ajit Agarkar and Gautam Gambhir as soon as possible and hand over the captaincy to Rohit Sharma again with full respect.”

An Instagram user shared the poster with the caption, “Navjot Singh Sidhu about Rohit Sharma’s captaincy.” (Archive)

A similar post can be seen here. (Archive)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the viral claim is false. Sidhu himself denied the statement on his official X handle, calling the viral claim fake.

A keyword search led us to a Hindustan Times report titled “‘Shame on you’: Navjot Sidhu shocked, tears into fake news on Gautam Gambhir and Ajit Agarkar exit post”, published on October 21.

According to the report, Sidhu was shocked after a fake post attributed a statement to him criticising Agarkar and Gambhir. The article said Sidhu immediately refuted the claim on social media, terming it “fake news.”

We also found Sidhu’s official response on his X handle, posted on October 20. He wrote, “Never said it, don’t spread fake news, never imagined it. Shame on you.”

Never said it , don’t spread fake news ,never imagined it. Shame on you https://t.co/qCZlwaUrwK

— Navjot Singh Sidhu (@sherryontopp) October 20, 2025

The same news was covered by multiple outlets can be seen here and here.

The claim that Navjot Singh Sidhu called for sacking Ajit Agarkar and Gautam Gambhir and reappointing Rohit Sharma as captain is false.