VVS Laxman vs Gautam Gambhir India head coach (Source: AFP)
After an extremely disappointing tour of Ireland and England, Team India toured Zimbabwe, with VVS Laxman briefly taking on the responsibility of the head coach.
Under a new T20 captain, Shreyas Iyer, India started afresh after a 4-0 T20I series defeat and a 2-1 ODI series loss to England. Nonetheless, the Men in Blue bounced back and sealed a 3-0 clean sweep over Zimbabwe.
For the uninformed, India’s squad for the Zimbabwe Tour 2026 went through a number of changes, including a shift in the coaching model.
VVS Laxman Took Up India Head Coach Role For IND vs ZIM T20Is and Asian Games
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) opted to split India’s coaching model to manage India’s packed schedule. Thus, VVS Laxman and his usual coaching set-up accompanied the team and will continue till the fast-approaching Asian Games 2026.
Team India’s 3-0 clean sweep in the T20I series against Zimbabwe, though a minnow, was crucial for restoring team momentum, serving as a big relief after previous losses, and showcasing young talent, amid the absence of players like Jasprit Bumrah, Sanju Samson, and Axar Patel.
Hence, it is important to look into the things the stand-in head coach VVS Laxman did differently from the usual Indian coach Gautam Gambhir.
1) Trusted a stable opening pair, despite underperformance
India’s primary opening options during the UK Tour were Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson, with teenager Vaibhav Sooryavanshi included as a young opening prospect.
Moreover, Sanju was rested for the Zimbabwe tour, with Prabhsimran Singh added as his replacement.
Notably, on both the tours, Abhishek Sharma maintained a regular role at the top of the order. While initially, Sanju Samson opened with Sharma, he was soon replaced by a 15-year-old Vaibhav during the England tour after failing to impress against Ireland. Then he again returned for the final T20I of the series.
Also read: India’s Record In Zimbabwe In T20Is Before India Tour Of Zimbabwe 2026
On the other hand, VVS Laxman kept faith in the opening pair of Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who bounced back strongly to help India complete a 3-0 T20I series sweep against Zimbabwe in July 2026.
Although Sooryavanshi had a quiet outing against England, Laxman's consistent backing paid off as the opening duo set an aggressive tone, with Sooryavanshi winning the Player of the Series award.
2) Played with 3 specialist pacers
During the tough 2026 white-ball UK tour, head coach Gautam Gambhir's utilisation of bowlers faced intense criticism for heavy experimentation, leaning heavily on spin-all-rounder combinations, and struggling at the death overs.
In the T20I leg against England, the management heavily favoured spin options and often deployed just one frontline fast bowler per match, which strained overall depth.
Late-innings execution faltered noticeably, with expensive spells leaking heavy runs in final overs during the ODI series against England (e.g., conceding 82 runs in the last 5 overs of an ODI).
In contrast, Laxman chose to play with three specialist pacers. Notably, India’s pace bowling contingent performed exceptionally well during the Zimbabwe series, led by express pacer Mayank Pacer, Prince Yadav, and debutants Ashok Sharma and Yash Thakur.
Mayank Yadav, who returned to international duty after nearly two years, was the standout pacer across all three games, combining raw speed with relentless line-and-length control to consistently break partnerships in the powerplay.
3) All-rounders didn’t unnecessarily fill the spot on playing XIs vs Zimbabwe
In continuation of the above point, team balance shifted significantly between Zimbabwe and their preceding UK tour, where the heavy reliance on multi-utility all-rounders contrasted sharply with a more specialised combination in Harare.
For example, Gambhir consistently included Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Shivam Dube, and Harshit Rana in playing 11s in England T20Is. This resulted in the lack of batting depth in the middle-orders as well as the lack of a specialist bowler who could complete his quota of four overs with reliability.
Also read: Full List Of Changes In India T20 Squad vs Zimbabwe Compared To England Tour
On the other hand, during the Zimbabwe tour, the management trimmed excess utility slots, relying instead on a single all-rounder, more or less Shivam Dube in the first 2 games and then Suryansh Shedge in the final T20I.
This provided a slot for a pure batter as well as for a pure spinner, in this case, Rinku Singh and Ravi Bishnoi. Both of them delivered effective performances. While Bishnoi picked up a wicket in every match with tight economy rates, Rinku provided valuable late-order finishing runs.
4) Continuously backed out-of-form permanent names
Interim coach VVS Laxman continued to back struggling players like Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, and Ravi Bishnoi during India’s 3-0 T20s series sweep in Zimbabwe, providing psychological safety despite a lean run.
Abhishek endured a tough sequence of low scores since the mid-England T20Is, but management maintained faith in his high-ceiling capabilities, despite an opener Prabhsimran Singh warming the bench.
Bishnoi was added to the squad as a last-minute replacement for Varun Chakaravarthy, who suffered a hamstring injury. Notably, Bishnoi had struggled with a high economy rate during a difficult T20I appearance against England.
Nonetheless, under Laxman, Bishnoi featured in all three games against Zimbabwe. He had a strong bounce-back, taking 3 wickets across 3 matches with an average economy of 5.667 throughout the series.
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