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Walter had a long-term vision, and the new coach will need to buy into his plan.
Rob Walter resigned as Proteas head coach this week. Picture: Grant Pitcher/Gallo Images
As crucial as our careers are to us, our private lives are more important, so we can’t blame Rob Walter for stepping down from his position as Proteas coach. But it does leave the national team in a difficult position just two years out from a home World Cup.
Walter is an incredibly good coach, and considering how well he did with the national cricket team, we can only be grateful for his efforts.
He guided the SA side to multiple playoffs at major championship events, and though he didn’t pick up a global title, he came closer than any of his predecessors.
Whatever it is that has drawn him away from the post, it must be significant, and we can’t criticise him for calling it quits.
World Cup ambitions
The reality, however, is that his departure could be detrimental to the national team’s ambitions at the 2027 World Cup.
The Proteas are in somewhat of a transitional phase, with a lot of experienced players on the verge of retirement, and Walter did well to provide opportunities to some younger players in an attempt to find new blood.
The problem now is that someone else is going to have to pick up from where Walter left off, and all we can hope is that he’s willing to spend some time with the new coach to explain where the Proteas were headed on the path he created.
Managing the players
Professional cricket players don’t need to be coached. They need to be managed. And the most important role of the Proteas head coach is to take a group of players from across the country and get them to work together.
Based on their results in recent years, Walter was doing an excellent job of getting the players to gel, and it will be interesting to see if the new coach can find a formula that works within just two years.
If not, all their recent success will mean nothing, and we can forget winning the World Cup on home soil.
Whoever Cricket SA selects as the new coach, he needs to pick up from where Walter left off and buy into his plan. That’s the only way he will succeed.
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