Gary Stead to continue as New Zealand’s head coach till 2025

Earlier in the year, New Zealand head coach Gary Stead was very vocal about split-coaching but New Zealand Cricket (NZC) decided against it as the current coach eventually extended his deal till 2025. Notably, Stead was appointed in 2018 and since then, the 51-year-old has brought a lot of success as the team managed to win the World Test Championship in 2021, qualified for the finals of the ODI World Cup in 2019, and also played the finals of T20 World Cup in 2021.

Meanwhile, the new contract will see Stead in charge of the team during the ODI World Cup 2023, the upcoming T20 World Cup in 2024, the entire World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle and also in the Champions Trophy, which will be held in Pakistan in 2025. New Zealand Cricket’s General Manager of High-Performance, Bryan Stronach, was absolutely thrilled after Stead extended his contract and lauded him for his performance with the team so far.

“Gary’s results have been very impressive and we’re confident that he still has a lot to offer the team. Of course, a big part of this decision came down to whether Gary wanted to continue and he made it clear his appetite to take this team forward was as keen as ever,” Bryan said in NZC’s official statement.

“A split-coaching role was discussed in depth but, with most of our leading BLACKCAPS playing across all three formats, and the culture of the group so strong and positive, we saw clear benefits in supporting the status quo,” he added.

Tim Southee opens up on Stead’s extension

After Kane Williamson relinquished the Test captaincy, veteran pacer Tim Southee was appointed as the skipper and since then, he has done a commendable job leading the red-ball team. Meanwhile, when asked about Stead’s extension, Southee mentioned all the achievements that the team had achieved under his mentorship and spoke about the tough responsibility that a coach carries amid the busy schedule of international cricket.

“Gary’s had great success leading us into finals in all three formats and, of course, that World Test Championship win. It’s been great the way that he’s come in and built on what was previously achieved. The sheer amount of time players and support staff spend away from family and loved ones makes for a challenging environment. With so much cricket being played these days, being able to effectively manage people and their workloads is a huge part of the job,” Southee said.