Indian national cricket team head coach Gautam Gambhir attributes India’s successful defense of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title to former Indian cricket superstars Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman.
India defeated the New Zealand national cricket team by 96 runs in the final. With this victory, India became the first team to win the T20 World Cup three times (2007, 2024 and 2026). They also became the first team to successfully defend the title and the first team to win the championship locally.
Despite their monumental achievements, Gambhir also remembered the contributions of Dravid, who coached India to victory in the 2024 T20 World Cup, and Laxman, who is now the BCCI Center of Excellence chief.
“I will dedicate this trophy to Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman. Rahul bhai helped the Indian team and Laxman built the pipeline in the CoE,” Gambhir said.
Gambhir also thanked chief selector Ajit Agarkar and Jay Shah, chairman of the International Cricket Council and former secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
“Ajit Agarkar took a lot of criticism but was honest in his work. And Jay bhai. He called me during the lowest ebb of my tenure after the losses to New Zealand and South Africa (Test series at home in 2024 and 2025),” he pointed out.
In the final, India performed well with the bat and scored 255/5. They then went on to win comfortably by defeating New Zealand by 159 runs.
The head coach also praised captain Suryakumar Yadav for working closely with him during the tournament and helping guide the team.
“Suriya has made my job easier. He is a fatherly leader. The bigger goal is to celebrate trophies rather than milestones. We have been celebrating milestones over the years. I would urge you to stop celebrating personal milestones,” Gambhir added.
