- By Namrata Vijay
- Sat, 27 Dec 2025 07:58 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
IND vs SA: Gautam Gambhir's record as India's head coach in white-ball cricket has been brilliant as the team has won an ICC and ACC title, but they have lost 10 Test matches to SENA nations. As per a report, after the host lost the Test series against South Africa, ex-Indian cricketer VVS Laxman was approached directly by the board for the role of Test head coach.
But it is understood that VVS Laxman is quite happy being the 'Head of Cricket' of the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
Gambhir's contract will end after the 2027 ODI World Cup, and there are high chances that it will be revisited, and it will depend on how the team performs in the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Speculations are rife that the BCCI is still pondering whether Gambhir is the right fit for India's Test head coach position for the rest of the nine World Test Championship 2025-27 matches.
After the Test series against England, which ended in a 2-2 tie, the upcoming Test series will be against teams like 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.
"Gambhir does have (a strong backing within the power corridors of Indian cricket, and obviously, if India retain the T20 World Cup or at least reach the final, he would be seamlessly continuing with his assignment. However, it would be interesting if Gambhir continues in Tests too," a BCCI source was quoted as saying to PTI.
"His advantage being (that there) aren't too many alternate options in red ball format since VVS Laxman isn't interested in coaching the senior Test team," he said.
The Indian players currently looked quite confused, as a lot of players feel insecure under Gambhir.
Players under Dravid's three-year term got a lot of backing to prove their worth.
Shubman Gill's snub from the T20 World Cup team was Gambhir's decision, and it's quite clear that if India's poster can be treated like this, then any players might also be snubbed.
The BCCI takes some time as far as making decisions are concerned, and after the World Cup, there will be two months of IPL.
The board will have enough time to make a decision about split coaching or stick with one coach for all formats after how they perform at the mega event.
The upcoming months look quite interesting for 'Guru Gambhir' even if he is backed by the BCCI.