"This is totally speculative news" - BCCI Secretary dismisses reports of board approaching India legend for Test coaching job

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Devajit Saikia has dismissed reports that VVS Laxman will replace Gautam Gambhir as the new Test coach. The cricket administrator clarified that the reports are entirely speculative, factually incorrect, and baseless. With the next Test series scheduled in Sri Lanka in August 2026, the 56-year-old stressed that the BCCI hasn’t made any decision in that regard.

Speaking to ANI, Saikia said:

“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.”

While Team India has blossomed under Gautam Gambhir in the white-ball formats, particularly in T20Is, they have failed to deliver in the red-ball format. Under his coaching, India have been whitewashed by New Zealand (0-3 in 2024) and South Africa (0-2 in 2025). They also lost 1-3 to Australia in the 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under.

The Men in Blue, though, managed to win by identical 2-0 margins against Bangladesh and the West Indies in 2024 and 2025, respectively. Their most impressive performance came in the 2025 Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, where the Shubman Gill-led side settled for a 2-2 draw.

Gambhir, who guided India to the 2025 Champions Trophy title, will now look to help the defending champions retain their crown at the 2024 T20 World Cup.

Speaking about Laxman, the current NCA head, has coached the national team on several occasions since Rahul Dravid's tenure as head coach to manage workload. After Dravid's tenure, he coached the side during India's tour of Zimbabwe before Gambhir took charge, and then served the role during the T20I series against South Africa on the 2024/25 tour.

India are placed sixth in the WTC 2025-27 points table

Despite having three Test series in hand, India have placed themselves in an unwanted situation in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 cycle. With four wins in nine matches, they are currently sixth in the points table.

As a result, the Shubman Gill-led side must yield results in the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka (away) and New Zealand (home) in 2026 and the 2027 BGT series against Australia ( five-match series at home) if they want to avoid missing out on consecutive WTC finals. Notably, the Men in Blue finished third in the 2023-25 points table.

Follow IPL Auction 2025 Live Updates, News & Biddings at Sportskeeda. Get the fastest updates on Mega-Auction and cricket news

Edited by James Kuanal