Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir will be unavailable for the upcoming Zimbabwe tour and the 2026 Asian Games in Japan this year, prompting the BCCI to hand temporary coaching charge to National Cricket Academy chief and former star batter VVS Laxman. With two series scheduled simultaneously, the board has decided to split coaching duties between the two.
The Asian Games will be held in Japan from September 19 to October 4, but India’s senior team is set to play a white-ball series against West Indies at home starting September 27 during the same window. Since Gambhir will stay with the senior team for the West Indies series, Laxman will take charge of the Asian Games squad, which enters the tournament as defending champion. The old support staff will also return alongside Laxman, with former spinner Sunil Joshi as bowling coach and former batter Hrishikesh Kanitkar as batting coach — the same set-up that will also travel for the Zimbabwe tour.
Stepping up for Team India at crucial moments is nothing new for Laxman. He previously served as stand-in coach during the 2022 tours of Ireland and Zimbabwe, as well as the Asia Cup and New Zealand series, guiding the team to success each time. His coaching also played a key role in India’s men’s team winning gold at the 2023 Asian Games.
Right after the ongoing T20 series against England concludes, India will play a three-match T20 series against Zimbabwe from July 23 to 26 in Harare, with a young squad prepared for the tour. Shreyas Iyer will captain the side, with Tilak Varma as vice-captain. Young players including opener Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Mayank Yadav, Abhishek Sharma, Rinku Singh, and Ashok Sharma are expected to play key roles in the series.