The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is worried. The board that has seen tremendous success in the last couple of years has never seen the T20I side stoop this low. A team that dominated, winning the Asia Cup 2025 and the T20 World Cup 2026 alongside enjoying a streak of 12 unbeaten bilaterals, has failed to win a game in the last six matches. Under Gautam Gambhir and Shreyas Iyer, India were cleanswept by Ireland and have now lost the T20I series to England as well.
On July 9, India put up another horrible show. Sweeping under the transition talks, India failed to adapt to the English conditions again. Harry Brook tormented the Indian bowling after the batters failed to do the job. Barring Shreyas Iyer, who made a superb 80*, no other Indian batter turned up. That has been a regular pattern in this UK tour that has featured two T20Is against Ireland and five against the T20 World Cup 2022 champs.
BCCI to sit with Iyer and Gambhir
Now, after reports emerged that coach Gambhir’s job might be in danger, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia has spoken about the situation in the current Indian team. The board is somewhat furious with the team’s performance in Europe.
Before this tour, India made a massive call by sacking captain Suryakumar Yadav, who was perhaps India’s best captain statistically. He was enduring a poor run of form for a long time. India basically carried him throughout the T20 World Cup 2026 run, barring the USA match. Iyer was then sitting on the bench, creating impact in the IPL. He led KKR to a fantastic IPL 2024 title win before taking Punjab Kings to their first IPL final in a decade. All this and his superb form at four made his way into the team directly as captain.
However, it has not gone well at all. He has taken his time to settle into the side. Moreover, Iyer has been let down by the fellow batters. Abhishek Sharma hasn’t converted his starts. The Sanju Samson vs Vaibhav Sooryavanshi debate is a hot topic. Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan has had a horror tour so far. The bowling group has been okayish as well. On the flip side, Ireland and England played as per the conditions beautifully and outplayed India on all fronts. Now, the BCCI secretary has revealed that once the series is over, the captain and coach will be summoned and there will be discussions on what went wrong and how India can regain its dominance.
“We are deeply concerned about the Indian team’s performance, and once this series is over we will definitely have a review with the captain and coach to understand what is going wrong and will rectify the problems soon so we can regain our stature,” Saikia told India Today.
Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy record in last 13 T20 matches
| Team | Result | Margin | Opposition | Ground | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| India | Lost | 9 wickets | England | Bristol | 9 Jul 2026 |
| India | Lost | 125 runs | England | Nottingham | 7 Jul 2026 |
| India | Lost | 4 wickets | England | Manchester | 4 Jul 2026 |
| India | No Result | — | England | Chester-le-Street | 1 Jul 2026 |
| India | Lost | 1 run | Ireland | Belfast | 28 Jun 2026 |
| India | Lost | 34 runs | Ireland | Belfast | 26 Jun 2026 |
| Punjab Kings | Won | 7 wickets | LSG | Lucknow | 23 May 2026 |
| Punjab Kings | Lost | 23 runs | RCB | Dharamsala | 17 May 2026 |
| Punjab Kings | Lost | 6 wickets | MI | Dharamsala | 14 May 2026 |
| Punjab Kings | Lost | 3 wickets | DC | Dharamsala | 11 May 2026 |
| Punjab Kings | Lost | 33 runs | SRH | Hyderabad | 6 May 2026 |
| Punjab Kings | Lost | 4 wickets | GT | Ahmedabad | 3 May 2026 |
| Punjab Kings | Lost | 6 wickets | RR | New Chandigarh | 28 Apr 2026 |
Record in these 13 matches:
- Won: 1
- Lost: 11
- No Result: 1
- Tosses Won: 9 out of 13 (69.2%)
- Matches after winning toss: 1 win, 7 losses, 1 no result.
Coming straight from the T20 World Cup 2026 in India and then the IPL 2026, Team India has gone from flat tracks to seaming, bouncy surfaces, and they have failed to adapt. The results scream mediocrity. Against Ireland, they were complacent. Then against a better-equipped England, a 76 all out, then a nine-wicket thrashing.
This “see ball, hit ball” approach that works in the IPL has crashed hard in English conditions. The short ball in particular has exposed them. Leadership has been a mixed bag too. The captain’s been scoring runs but hasn’t really found answers tactically. The vice-captain has been horrible himself. In fact, nobody knows what is Tilak Varma’s best batting spot. He’s going to feel the heat on the upcoming Zimbabwe tour with Rinku Singh pushing for a comeback, plus Suryansh Shedge also in the mix.
And there’s still something big on the line. On July 11 in the 5th T20I, India can at least save face and hold onto the No.1 T20I ranking. Harry Brook’s already come out swinging — England want a 4-0 whitewash and they want that top spot.
Cricket
BCCI responds to Team India's debacle against Ireland & England; Shreyas Iyer likely to be summoned
