Laxman named head coach for Zimbabwe ODIs

NEW DELHI: National Cricket Academy (NCA) chief VVS Laxman will be India’s acting head coach for the Zimbabwe tour as there is only a short turnaround time between the series and the Asia Cup in the UAE, BCCI secretary Jay Shah said on Friday.

“Yes, Laxman will be in charge of the India team in Zimbabwe for the three-match ODI series. The ODI series in Zimbabwe finishes on August 22 and (head coach) Rahul Dravid, along with the India team, will reach the UAE on August 23. Since there is little gap between the two events (Asia Cup starts on August 27), Laxman will be in charge of the India team in Zimbabwe,” Shah told PTI on Friday.

The three ODIs will be played in Harare on August 18, 20 and 22. Shah also informed that stand-in skipper KL Rahul and Deepak Hooda would fly directly from Harare to Dubai as they are also part of the Asia Cup squad. Rahul is making a comeback to the national squad after recuperating from sports hernia surgery and contracting COVID-19.