Batting great VVS Laxman will reportedly oversee India's preparations ahead of the first Test against England in Leeds after regular head coach Gautam Gambhir had to return home due to a family emergency.

According to Revsportz, Laxman, who heads the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) Centre of Excellence (COE), is already in London as part of the India Under-19's tour of the United Kingdom.

His junior team will be participating in five List A games which are set to begin on June 27, followed by two first-class fixtures, slated to be held in Beckenham and Chelmsford later next month.

Laxman had been involved with the senior team previously when a second-string squad was sent to South Africa to play a T20I series.

Gambhir had to fly back after his mother reportedly suffered a heart attack on June 11. He had to return back from the Border-Gavaskar Trophy last year as well due to a family emergency.

Questions were raised over his ability to coach the Test side following defeats to New Zealand at home and Australia away, which resulted in the side missing out on a WTC Final spot.

However, the former opener has proven his mettle in the white-ball format, having led India to the Champions Trophy title in 2025 apart from forming a strong T20I unit under the captaincy of Suryakumar Yadav.

Team India began their final leg of preparations for the England series with an intra-squad game in Beckenham, where the likes of KL Rahul and Shubman Gill slammed half-centuries on the opening day, followed by Sarfaraz Khan's quickfire century to strengthen claims for a spot in the senior side.

The tour will mark the beginning of India’s new WTC cycle under the captaincy of Gill, who will need all the support he can get as they face a tough task of facing England on their home turf. The side will hope that Gambhir can rejoin the squad as soon as possible.