Rob Walter stepped down as South Africa head coach earlier in the month. He wanted to return to New Zealand and as things stand, he is currently in contention to take over the head coach role after Gary Stead’s contract ends in June 2025. However, the ball remains in Stead’s court, who will be allowed to continue if he decides to extend his tenure as New Zealand head coach.
Ahead of Stead’s second tenure, the 53-year-old was vocal about split coaching, which England and South Africa practised for some time. Now, in case he agrees to the same, both Stsead and Walter can be seen as head coaches of the New Zealand team but in different formats. As things stand, nothing is concrete and many rounds of discussions will take place but New Zealand Cricket confirm any new development.
Several of the New Zealand cricketers, including Kane Williamson, Devon Conway and Lockie Ferguson have opted out of the central contract, while the likes of Trent Boult and Tim Southee have announced retirement. Interestingly, the Test team is currently led by Tom Latham while Mitchell Santner is the captain of the white-ball squad. It only indicates that two separate coaches can also be hired, if required.
Walter meanwhile has worked in an environment where split-coaching is practiced. In South Africa, Shukri Conrad coached the red-ball team while Walter was managing the white-ball squad. It could be possible that he takes up the same role in the New Zealand team.
According to ESPNcricinfo, Walter had difficulties settling in South Africa, especially as his family was in New Zealand. His resignation came as a surprise to Cricket South Africa officials but it is believed that the management understood the reason behind leaving the coaching role. He was appointed for the role in 2023 and served almost two years, during which, South Africa qualified for the semi-finals of the ODI World Cup and the final of the T20 World Cup in 2024.