BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla has refuted reports claiming that the board is considering appointing a new head coach in place of Gautam Gambhir in the Test format.
With Gambhir at the helm, India have won seven, lost 10 and drew two of their 19 Tests so far, which includes a couple of clean sweeps against New Zealand (0-3) and South Africa (0-2) at home.
Speculations are rife that the BCCI may adopt split coaching, with Gambhir retaining the position as white-ball coach. However, he might be replaced in the Test setup as the board has reportedly approached VVS Laxman for the red-ball coaching role.
However, Shukla categorially denied the rumours, saying that there is no plan to remove Gambhir as head coach of the Indian Test team.
"I want to make it very clear regarding the speculation circulating in the media about head coach Gautam Gambhir. The BCCI secretary (Devajit Saikia) has also made it very clear that there is no plan to remove Gambhir or bring in a new head coach for India," Shukla told ANI.
Earlier, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia rubbished the reports, citing that the board has not taken any steps regarding change of leadership group in the longest format of the game.
"This is totally incorrect news going on. This is totally speculative news. Some very reputed news agencies are also flashing the news. There is no truth to it. BCCI straight away denies. People can think all they want, but BCCI has not taken any steps. This is somebody's figment of imagination; there is no truth in it, and I cannot say anything except that this is factually incorrect and baseless news," Saikia told ANI on Sunday.
While Gambhir’s contract with BCCI runs until the end of the 2027 ODI World Cup, India have nine Tests remaining in the ongoing World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.
The Shubman Gill-led will tour against Sri Lanka (August 2026) and New Zealand (October 2026) for two Tests coach, before hosting Australia in a five-Test series in January-February 2027.
For now, India's most significant challenge is defending their T20 World Cup title. The showpiece tournament will be played in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.
Notably, Gautam Gambhir has enjoyed success as India’s white-ball coach, winning the Champions Trophy and Asia Cup title earlier this year.
The Men in Blue will kick-off off their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign against the USA on February 7 in Mumbai and have been slotted alongside Pakistan, Namibia, the Netherlands and the USA in Group A.
(With ANI Inputs)
