On Reports Of BCCI Meeting India Great VVS Laxman For Head Coach Post, Big Details Emerge

For Team India and Gautam Gambhir, the year 2025 has been a story of paradoxes. While India won the Asia Cup (T20Is) and the Champions Trophy (ODIs), they also slumped to losses in big Test bilateral contests like the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and the Test series against South Africa. The Proteas clean-swept India 2-0 at home. This came after India lost 3-0 to New Zealand at home under Gautam Gambhir's coaching in 2024. The defeats in the red-ball format have raised serious question marks about Gambhir's credibility as Test coach.

In the midst of this, a report by news agency PTI claimed that "right after India's abject surrender against South Africa in the two-Test series at home last month, someone who matters in the cricket board had once again informally approached VVS Laxman to check if he would be interested in coaching the red-ball team.

"However, it is learnt that the legendary batter of yesteryears is happy being the 'Head of Cricket' at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru," the report added

NDTV sources, however, have made it clear that Gambhir is not going anywhere until the 2027 World Cup.

A senior BCCI official said: "We have not spoken to VVS Laxman either officially or unofficially." He further added, "The BCCI has complete trust in Gautam Gambhir, and no discussion has been held regarding this matter."

However, in Indian cricket, no one can predict when a decision might be taken. Who would have thought that vice-captain Shubman Gill could be dropped from the World Cup squad just before the T20 World Cup?

According to the PTI report, while Gambhir's contract with the BCCI runs until the end of the 2027 ODI World Cup, there is every possibility that it could be revisited depending on India's performance in the T20 World Cup, which begins in five weeks' time.

It is understood that in the BCCI corridors, the jury is still out on whether Gambhir is the right person to remain at the helm of the red-ball team for the remaining nine Tests of the World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.

Having drawn 2-2 in a five-Test away series in England, India have a couple of overseas assignments comprising two Tests each against Sri Lanka in August 2026 and a tour of New Zealand in October, before hosting Australia for a five-Test affair in January-February 2027.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team BCCI VVS Laxman Gautam Gambhir Cricket