VVS Laxman to be India’s coach for Ireland tour, confirms BCCI

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on May 25 (Wednesday) confirmed that VVS Laxman will take up the coaching responsibility for India’s tour of Ireland, slated to start on June 26. Meanwhile, India head coach Rahul Dravid will be managing the senior member squad for the rescheduled fifth Test as well as the white-ball series in England. Dravid is expected to join the touring team after the completion of the five-match T20I series against South Africa on June 19 in Bengaluru.

BCCI secretary Jay Shah on Wednesday confirmed that Laxman will travel with the Indian squad to Dublin. A similar kind of arrangement was also made last year when Dravid, then head of the National Cricket Academy (NCA), took on Sri Lanka in a white-ball series when Ravi Shastri was in England with the Test team.

VVS Laxman is currently serving as NCA director

Meanwhile, the former Indian batter will be doing the coaching duties to fill in for Dravid in Ireland. The former Indian batter is currently serving as the Director of Cricket at NCA in Bengaluru. To note, Laxman holds a lot of experience in the coaching department.

Before sitting as NCA director in Bengaluru, the former Indian batter was involved in a coaching role with the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Indian domestic team Bengal as a batting consultant. He was also in charge of the World Cup-winning U-19 squad earlier this year in the Caribbean.

With South Africa visiting India for a five-match T20I series following the conclusion of the IPL, BCCI has already announced the squad to take on the Proteas. While the senior Indian players will remain engaged in the England tour, it is said that the same squad used for the South Africa series might also be used for the two-match T20I series against Ireland. Both T20I matches are slated to be played in Dublin.