Team India’s T20I captain Shreyas Iyer thanked acting head coach VVS Laxman after the team’s 3-0 T20I series win over Zimbabwe. Iyer said the former India batsman played a major role in keeping the young team confident with his guidance and motivational approach throughout the tour.
The Men in Blue completed a clean sweep with a 35-run win over Zimbabwe in the third and final T20I at the Harare Sports Club in Harare on Sunday, July 26. The visitors defended a total of 192/5 by restricting the hosts to 157/7. Shreyas registered his first bilateral T20I series win as India captain.
Thanks to VVS Laxman sir – Shreyas Iyer expressed his gratitude
In the dressing room video shared by BCCI after the series, Shreyas Iyer thanked VVS Laxman for his guidance during the Zimbabwe tour. The Indian captain said that Laxman’s words inspired the players every day and helped the team during the three-match series.
Iyer said, “And also thank you to VVS Laxman sir, who inspired us and motivated us every day when we stepped on the field. I think everything you mentioned was apt, and we can relate to that. So thank you very much, and thank you to everyone.”
Shreyas bounced back after a difficult start to his T20I captaincy in Ireland and England. India played the series without several regular players including Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana.
A lot of credit should be given to the captain – VVS Laxman praises Shreyas Iyer
VVS Laxman said that Shreyas Iyer has been confident since joining the team and played a major role in bringing together a relatively inexperienced group.
“We were ready to win the series. That’s what we aspired to do. I want to congratulate Shreyas because he had a tough start to his captaincy career, but the way he came back, and right from the first day, when he joined us a day before the first game, he was very optimistic. In fact, he was looking forward to playing with all of you with a new group of players.”
“We know only four or five players from the England tour joined us on this tour. But he was very confident. I think a lot of credit for this win should be given to the captain and the way he encouraged you all.”
“We had one thing we wanted to achieve. We wanted to display a winner’s mentality. If you remember our first meeting before the opening match, we asked if we could display that mentality. In all three matches, each of you showed it, so congratulations,” Laxman said.
Series wins are a reflection of the standards of a team… – VVS Laxman
After the celebration, VVS Laxman shared a message on social media. He also thanked the support staff and urged the players to continue raising their standards in the coming months.
“Series wins are a reflection of the standards a team sets every day. Proud of the commitment, resilience and selflessness shown by this group throughout the tour. Congratulations to the players and thank you to the support staff for their unwavering dedication. I am confident this team will move forward with a hunger to improve and a determination to maintain the highest standards. God bless,” he wrote.
Laxman served as the stand-in head coach during the Zimbabwe tour, while Gautam Gambhir took a short break after the United Kingdom tour. Gambhir is expected to return in India’s Test series against Sri Lanka. Laxman will also serve as the head coach for the 2026 Asian Games.