New Zealand head coach Gary Stead will no longer be in charge of the team for white-ball matches. He now has a few weeks to decide if he wants to apply again for the job as the Test team coach.
Stead took over as coach in 2018 after Mike Hesson stepped down. His contract was extended twice, once in 2020 and again in 2023. His current deal runs out in June. Under Stead, New Zealand won the inaugural World Test Championship in 2021 and whitewashed India in India 3-0.
“I’m looking forward to getting away from touring life for a while and having a think about my future. My focus has been on finishing the season strongly with a lesser experienced team. The past six to seven months has been particularly busy with relatively non-stop cricket action since September. I now want to evaluate my options but still feel I have coaching left in me, albeit not as Head Coach across all formats, Stead said.
“The next month will give me the opportunity to discuss the situation more with my wife, family and others. I’ll be in a better position to know whether I want to reapply for the Test coaching position after this time of reflection,” he added.
NZC to Start Coach Hunt Soon
“Gary has done a great job for a long time, and we really respect that. We’re happy to give him some space to think things through and decide what he wants to do next,” said NZC’s High Performance Chief, Bryan Stronach.
“At the moment we haven’t any strong preference for either a split-coaching role or a sole appointment who covers all three formats, and we’re unlikely to be clearer on that until we see who’s putting their name forward.”
The advertisements for the coaching position will happen “within the next week or so,” said a New Zealand Cricket media release.
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