Rob Walter resigns as Proteas white ball coach

Cricket South Africa (CSA) announced the surprise resignation of Proteas men’s white-ball head coach Rob Walter on Tuesday, effective the end of April, due to personal reasons, which CSA has accepted.

The Proteas chose to split the coaching roles between Shukri Conrad, Test coach (red ball), and Walter, ODI and T20I (white ball), back in 2023, and this has seen the team excel on the global stage over the past few years.

Conrad has led the Proteas to the World Test Championship final, to be battled out against Australia at Lords in June this year.

Walter has not enjoyed the best results in regular series, during his 36 ODI’s and 31 T20I’s, though under his guidance they have picked up series wins against the Netherlands, Australia, Ireland and Pakistan.

But it is in major tournaments where the Proteas have thrived under Walter, with him leading them to semifinal appearances at the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in India, and the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy in Pakistan this year.

Arguably his greatest achievement however was leading the Proteas to their first ever ICC Men’s T20 World Cup final in the West Indies in 2024, where they finished as runners up to India, despite a record run of eight consecutive wins that underpinned the campaign.

“Coaching the Proteas has been an incredible honour, and I am immensely proud of what we have achieved together,” said Walter,

“The players, support staff, and the South African cricketing community have been fantastic throughout this journey. While it’s time for me to step away, I have no doubt that the team will continue to grow and reach even greater heights.”

Immense job

Director of national teams and high performance Enoch Nkwe said: “Rob has done an immense job for South African cricket over the past two years.

“It is also important to recognise Rob’s commitment to expanding the talent pool across both formats. While in charge, he ensured that emerging players had the opportunity to develop and make their mark at the highest level, which will be critical for the future of the Proteas.

“We have a busy period of white-ball cricket over the next two years as we build towards the Cricket World Cup on home soil. His successor will continue to work towards that 50-over World Cup campaign, along with next year’s T20 World Cup.”

CSA chief executive officer Pholetsi Moseki added: “Rob played a significant role in the rebuilding of the Proteas brand on the international stage. During his two years in charge, we have witnessed a significant increase in faith in South African cricket, largely due to the team’s performance.

“His professionalism and work ethic have been exemplary, and he will undoubtedly be missed. On behalf of Cricket South Africa, we wish him all the success in the future.”

 CSA added that they will announce a successor in due course, and Conrad will surely be one of the names in the running to take over the coaching in all three formats.