Gary Stead to resume as New Zealand coach until World Cup 2023
New Zealand Men’s head coach Gary Stead has had his contract extended for the job by New Zealand Cricket for 3 more years. Stead, who was first appointed 11 months before last year’s 50-over World Cup, replacing Mike Hesson, will stay head coach until the 2023 Cricket World Cup in the subcontinent.
New Zealand went on to reach the final, controversially losing out to hosts England on boundary count. Hesson has had a mixed share of results as coach. Away from home, New Zealand triumphed against Pakistan, but drew and lost to Sri Lanka and Australia respectively. They returned home and beat India both in the Test and ODI series.
ALSO READ: New Zealand Cricketers want to be ready for potential Cricket in the near future: Kane Williamson
“It’s an honour and a privilege to be re-appointed”, said Stead. “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.
There were rumours of a rift between New Zealand coach Gary Stead and skipper Kane Williamson, but they were dismissed by the duo stating them as ‘positive conflict’
New Zealand Cricket CEO David White revealed the board had made the call after a panel interviewed Stead last week and had been pleased with his vision for the team. He said, “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.”
ALSO READ: Kane Williamson, Gary Stead deny rumours of conflict
“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 count-back 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.”