After Sanju, even Gambhir will not go to Zimbabwe, the entire sports staff has changed, when will ‘Gautam’s team’ return?

New Delhi. Former Indian cricketer and Center of Excellence (CoE) chief VVS Laxman will take over as the head coach of the Indian cricket team for the series against Zimbabwe and the Asian Games 2026. The decision came on the day the BCCI announced the squad for the three-match series against Zimbabwe starting later this month. According to reports, for both these assignments, Laxman will take over the coaching position in place of Gautam Gambhir and along with him, some new faces will also join the support staff.

Zimbabwe has come into the limelight even before the tour has started. First Sanju Samson not being in the team and now Gautam Gambhir’s team not going to Harare is indicating that the board wants to manage the workload of the players as well as the coaching staff.

Laxman will become coach for Zimbabwe series and Asian Games

According to a report, VVS Laxman will be the head coach of Team India during the Zimbabwe tour and the Asian Games 2026 to be held in Japan. The decision to divide the coaching responsibilities between Gautam Gambhir and the CoE chief has been taken in view of India’s busy international schedule, as the schedules of the Asian Games and the West Indies series are clashing with each other. During this time, Hrishikesh Kantikar will play the role of batting coach and Sunil Joshi will play the role of bowling coach. The report also says that this trio may continue coaching in the white-ball series against Bangladesh.

Gambhir’s report card

While Gautam Gambhir led India to the Champions Trophy in 2025 and the T20 World Cup in 2026, his performance in T20 international matches has not been that impressive in recent times. For the first time, India had to face defeat by 0-2 in the T20 series against Ireland. After this, Team India also lost in the second T20 match against England, while the first match remained incomplete due to rain.

When is the Zimbabwe tour?

The three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe will start from July 23, which will be held immediately after the England tour. Since Gautam Gambhir is currently present with Team India on the England tour, making Laxman the coach for the Zimbabwe series is being considered a practical decision. At the same time, the Asian Games 2026 will be held from September 19 to October 4, which will overlap with West Indies’ tour of India. During this period, the West Indies team will play 3 ODIs and 5 T20 matches between 27 September and 17 October.