Former India cricketer VVS Laxman has been appointed as the head coach of the Indian men’s cricket team for the Asian Games 2026, which will begin in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan later this month. India is the defending champion in the men’s cricket competition at the Asian Games.
Laxman will be supported by a team of coaches including Sunil Joshi, Hrishikesh Kanitkar, and Subhadeep Ghosh. He previously led the Indian team to victory at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
The cricket tournament starts on September 24, with India’s men’s team beginning their campaign on September 28 in the quarterfinals against the runners-up from Group A (which includes Nepal, Afghanistan, and Japan).
The Indian squad for the event is strong, featuring star batter Shreyas Iyer as captain. The team also includes teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and top pacer Jasprit Bumrah. Other notable players are Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan in the batting line-up, and Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Dube, and Washington Sundar as all-rounders.
Varun Chakravarthy will lead the spin attack, while Jasprit Bumrah will spearhead the pace attack alongside Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh.
Meanwhile, the Indian women’s team, led by Harmanpreet Kaur, will also aim to defend its title. Amol Muzumdar remains the head coach, with Aavishkar Salvi and Munish Bali assisting him.
This is not Laxman’s first time coaching the Indian men’s team. He previously stepped in as head coach when Gautam Gambhir was unavailable for certain tours. Gambhir will now focus on leading the senior team in the upcoming ODI series against the West Indies, which starts on September 27.
The Indian men’s squad includes: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.