Gautam Gambhir’s mom is better now and he should be back with the India Test team before the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy starts at Headingley on June 20. According to Cricbuzz, VVS Laxman, the head of the BCCI Centre of Excellence, has been around the team while Gambhir has been away. Laxman is not part of the team for this event and will leave soon.
He was in Switzerland for a conference and decided to drop in to see the team which was always on his plans. He came from London to Lausanne and watched the closed-door intra-squad match which was the last practice before the Test series. His role has been talking to the team and sharing his experiences before he leaves in a couple of days.
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A source said, “The aim is to win in England. He might have met the coaches and selectors here and even watched the intra-squad match. But he is not a formal member of the team.” Another source added, “He went to Switzerland and just stopped in London to hang out with the guys. That was always part of what he wanted to do.”
Meanwhile Gambhir is expected to join the team as early as Monday (June 16) and will definitely be back before the first Test. A close source said, “He’ll be back before the first Test. He’s spoken to the doctors about his mom’s condition which is improving but she’s still in the ICU. He’ll come back soon.”
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Gambhir is one of India’s top Test batsmen and the team can really use Laxman’s input. Laxman has played 11 Tests in England, scored 586 runs with five fifties and has also played 23 other First-Class matches in county cricket and India ‘A’ games.
While Gambhir was away, assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate has been leading the intra-squad game with batting coach Shitanshu Kotak and bowling coach Morne Morkel.
