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Sport Nation • April 8th, 2025 9:06 am
Brendon McCullum & Gary Stead I Photo: Photosport
Gary Stead has confirmed that he will step away from coaching white-ball cricket after originally taking the position in 2018. He will now take time to reflect on whether he wants to reapply for the role of Blackcaps Test coach.
Stead's current contract is set to expire in June - but the legacy of his tenure will see him finish as arguably New Zealand's most successful coach. His accolades include the inaugural World Test Championship title in 2021, and last year's historic tour of India that resulted in a 3-nil Test series sweep of India.
“I’m looking forward to getting away from touring life for a while and having a think about my future,” Stead in a statement.
“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.
“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.”
NZC CEO Scott Weenink revealed to Sport Nation yesterday that CVs from would-be coaches have already been received.
Due to Stead's success, NZC Chief High Performance Officer Bryan Stronach believes that the long-serving coach deserves the opportunity to reflect on his next move before considering an application.
“Gary’s results have been very impressive over a long period and we’re very comfortable giving him some time to collect his thoughts and mull things over,” said 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.”
NZ Cricket have stated that advertising for the position, whether in full and/or in part, will commence within the coming weeks.
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