New Zealand Cricket (NZC) has decided to extend the contract of head-coach Gary Stead till the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, which is scheduled to take place in India. He was first appointed to the role in 2018 following the resignation of Mike Hesson.
During Stead’s tenure the Blackcaps have had an impressive outing in all three formats. The remained undefeated in Test series apart from last summer’s tour to Australia, and qualified for their second consecutive World Cup final – against England at Lord’s last year.
New Zealand currently sit in second place on the ICC Test Rankings (behind Australia); are ranked No.3 in ODI cricket, and No.6 in T20Is.
With two Test series scheduled at home this summer (against the West Indies and Pakistan, respectively) there is an opportunity for Kane Williamson’s boys to improve their chances of qualifying for the Test Championship final, scheduled for Lord’s in June next year.
“It’s an honour and a privilege to be re-appointed”, Stead was quoted saying in an official media release of NZC. “I think this group of players is growing as a team; there’s an exciting schedule ahead of us and I know everyone is feeling very optimistic about our chances in all three formats.
“I’m very appreciative of the backing I’ve enjoyed from the players, the support staff and NZC and hope I can repay that confidence by helping the BLACKCAPS achieve their goals and objectives over the next three years.”
NZC chief executive David White said Stead’s re-appointment followed a robust and formal process which included consultation with players, NZC high-performance staff, and Major Association high-performance personnel.
He confirmed Stead had been interviewed by an appointments panel last week, following which a recommendation had been made to, and had been approved by, the NZC Board.
“What was immediately clear was that Gary had overseen a particularly successful chapter in New Zealand cricket history, during which time his team had been very strong in the Test and ODI formats,” said Mr White.
“Winning an away Test series against Pakistan and a Test in Sri Lanka was a tremendous effort, as were the home Test series wins against Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, England and India.
“To tie the World Cup final and miss out on winning the trophy through a countback was a gut-wrenching experience, but I think we can all agree on how well the team played during that campaign and, equally, how well they conducted themselves afterwards.”
White further added that, now Stead’s re-appointment was confirmed, a process would begin to appoint a new batting coach, following the move from Peter Fulton to take on the head coaching role with Canterbury.