Somewhere in August 2018, Gary Stead took over the mantle of coaching the New Zealand men’s set-up from Mike Hesson. Over the next seven years, it turned out to be a rewarding journey for Stead and the New Zealand players. The Black Caps reached the final of ICC tournaments/Championship four times and took home the WTC trophy. On the other hand, not being able to cross the finish line despite scoring the same amount of runs as England after the completion of 100 overs and the Super Over in the 2019 World Cup final would have been a gut-wrenching experience for Stead and Co.
After serving New Zealand cricket with distinction, Stead stepped down as the coach this month. In an exclusive chat with RevSportz, he charts the highs and lows of his journey, alongside sharing his views on the forthcoming England versus India Test series.
Excerpts:
You were at the helm of affairs as New Zealand’s head coach for almost seven years. How do you look at your time as the coach of the national side? It turned out to be a fruitful journey for you…
Look, it has been an amazing part of my life. I have been very fortunate and privileged to have that role as the head coach. A great bunch of people to work with, always trying to improve and get better. I think when you are in that situation as a coach, it is always easier to work with people who are like-minded and want to see that improvement. We have played some really good cricket in that period of time. We were fortunate to get over the line in that World Test Championship final. Very, very happy with it overall.
Let’s transport ourselves back to the World Test Championship final in Southampton in 2021. New Zealand seemed to have prepared really well before that summit clash. Any anecdotes to share from that memorable triumph?
We were fortunate to have a very good series beforehand (against England) where we took a big squad of 20 players because we thought we would give some (of them) a break, we didn’t want them to play three Tests over three weeks. So, we gave a number of players rest in the second Test at Edgbaston and managed to still win, which was fantastic. The World Test Championship itself, it was obviously Covid times, and I think the UK was just coming out of Covid at that time.
There wasn’t really the amount of fans you would expect in a ground. But there was still a big Indian contingent that was there to view their team. It was a game that I remember that went right down to the last day, both teams could have won it. We had to chase about 140 and it was nerve-wracking. I know that India are a quality side with Ashwin and Jadeja to spin in the last innings. To finally get over the line was a huge relief for the New Zealand team, something we have been close to on a number of occasions but couldn’t quite do it. So, I guess the relief was the first emotion that everyone felt.
Both teams were staying in the same hotel, we were very fortunate that there was a very big team room. I think the guys were sitting up for most of the night, celebrating. It was a very special time for the team. Of course, it was a six-day Test, two of the days were washed out. So, it helped the game to move very fast. I remember Kyle Jamieson had an outstanding game, his figures of 7 for 70 or something of 40 overs was absolutely incredible. And it was probably the difference in the game, I think.
What about the epochal 3-0 Test series win in India? Before that series, New Zealand ended up losing to Sri Lanka. So, how were you able to turnaround the fortunes?
Look, amazing series for us. I think the catalyst for us doing well was the two games in Sri Lanka. We had decided on a game plan that we wanted to play from a batting point of view. Try and not sit there, waiting to get out, but put more pressure on the bowlers. There were a couple of times in that Sri Lanka series where we could have pushed more and taken the game a bit more, but we didn’t do that. We believed in the way we were playing.
That first Test in Bengaluru, I think we were fortunate that we lost the toss and bowled beautifully in that first session to put India on the back foot. If you had asked New Zealand players before going there… if you win one Test that would be a really good series. But then to play the way we did, to play in a really positive manner and see India under pressure was great. I thought our spinners were outstanding, both Patel and Santner, and Glenn Phillips who supported them as well. I think it does show that all teams are capable of beating each other around the world. I think that is really important for Test cricket.
In the Bengaluru Test, there was a phase where Sarfraz Khan and Rishabh Pant were going hammer and tongs at the New Zealand attack. However, there was a rain break in between. Did that help New Zealand to not just claw their way back but also surge ahead?
What happens in that situation is that it gives you the chance to regroup and rethink – what you are doing and how you are playing. Sometimes, it is worse for the batsmen because they lose the momentum they have at that time. Yes, Sarfraz and Rishabh were playing beautifully and putting us under some real pressure. From my memory, our seamers came back and chipped out a wicket just before the new ball.
We sort of went through the back end of India with the second new ball to make the target not too big. The thing was the pitch was starting to crack more and more. We always knew with the likes of Bumrah and Siraj, they were going to be really handful at the start of the innings, but fortunately we got through it without much trouble and managed to keep chipping away with runs.
You have to say a few words on Mitchell Santner’s game-breaking spell in Pune. He was better known for his limited-overs skills, but he transformed himself into a game-changer in that Test…
What happens is when you get a pitch like that, sometimes, it puts more pressure on the spinners, even though it is really conducive to spinners. Mitchell’s great strength is his accuracy and he shows that through the one-day game where he is so good for us. All we asked him was to dry up an end. We knew that if we did that, the wicket would do enough for him to bowl some fantastic deliveries. He managed to do that and picked up 13 for that match. He had a slight side strain as well throughout that match, which makes it even more meritorious that he did play.
Will Young was New Zealand’s top run-getter in that series. A few words on him…
Will Young might not have played in that series if Kane Williamson was there. Will has been in and around our squad for the last few years and not always got opportunities. But when he has got it, he has made the most of them. Look, he played really well throughout that series, trusted his defence. And played at a nice tempo to put the pressure back on the bowlers. And also valued his wicket. It can be very, very tough to do it in conditions… you know the ball could pop up or spin sharply and put you under real pressure. But I thought the temperament and the mindset he had around that was very, very strong.
Going further back in your journey, there was the iconic 2019 World Cup final. Unfortunately, despite New Zealand scoring the same amount of runs after the completion of 100 overs and in the Super Over, they ended up coming second best. Just as a coach, can you take us through the gamut of emotions that you would have felt in that game?
To be honest, it was a little bit of an emotional rollercoaster, there were highs and lows. I think you had everything you wanted in a game of cricket there. With punches and counterpunches thrown by both teams. The result was hard, to not go our way when you have scored the same amount of runs. Look, it is hard to be bitter around when both teams played such a great game of cricket as well. So, I sort of say to people for me all the emotions you live in that day, the ups and downs, you live a life like that, then it will be a full life. It is nice to be a part of that experience, just disappointed that we came out on the wrong side of that.
There were a couple of players who took their game to a different level during your time. How do you see Matt Henry taking over the mantle of spearheading the pace attack in both the ODIs and Tests? Also, a few words on Rachin Ravindra’s emergence as a top-order batter…
For a large part of his career, Henry was bowling behind Boult and Southee and Wagner. I guess he had limited opportunities. We always knew what a great bowler he was, he is accurate, he brings the stumps into the play and puts batsmen under pressure. I think he has grown in his abilities and he has become a better white-ball bowler. He is really the cog for our seam-bowling attack, leads it with a few youngsters who are obviously very promising as well. Delighted for Matt, I had a lot to do with him when I was coaching Canterbury as well.
Rachin’s way into the team was a little bit different. I think, originally, we were looking at him to bowl some overs and bat at six or seven. In warm-up games (before the 2023 World Cup), he had two fantastic innings: One was against South Africa and the other Pakistan. He scored runs in both of them. With Kane Williamson not being ready, he had a broken thumb at that time… in that game, we gave Rachin the opportunity to bat up the order.
What he and Conway did in that opening game (of the World Cup) showed their class and made some tough conversations in terms of selections and what it looked for us going forward in that tournament. That wasn’t the original plan to have Rachin at the top, we always believed he would end up there. But we thought a year or so further down the track. I love the way Rachin plays, he is composed. He has gone from strength to strength; in the recent Champions Trophy, he played beautifully and got some big runs for us. He is going to be a really important part of this New Zealand squad in the next 10 years or so.
Let’s also talk about the upcoming England-India Test series. The likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and R Ashwin have quit the longest format. While watching from the sidelines during the India versus New Zealand series, did you feel somewhere that they were coming to the end of their respective illustrious careers?
When you get to that stage as a player, I have been there myself at some stage, you know deep inside that your time is probably up. They will have their reasons for that. But there is no doubting the impact that they have had on Indian cricket for a long, long period of time. Their experience, you can’t replace that. I know one thing with India is there is an enormous amount of highly skilled players that would step into the void, to go out there and do well for India. I think it is a hugely exciting series coming up. England are obviously a quality side as well. It will be great to watch them play.
How do you look at India’s rebuilding phase with Shubman Gill as the skipper?
I think there is a huge amount of respect for Shubman Gill in the way that he plays the game. He is obviously a quality player and with the likes of Jaiswal around him, then it is very exciting I think. The IPL has unearthed a lot of stars over the last 15 years. I think it has been as strong as it has ever been in the players that are coming through. I know what a proud cricketing country India is. And having Bumrah back as well… I am sure he will be influential in this Test series.
What about the aggressive brand of cricket that England play? Recently, New Zealand took on them in a Test series where you also saw the emergence of Brydon Carse and Jacob Bethell…
They are reasonably settled, with the odd new person coming through. The likes of Bethell and Carse add a little bit of new blood into that side. But the nucleus of the team is pretty strong right through the Brendon McCullum era. I know Brendon well and I am sure that he will be giving them trust to go out there and play their style of game. I think the way England play, it is a very attacking brand, it does put you under pressure. That element of surprise isn’t there so much now.
Just one more question on the cricketing landscape that exists at the moment. With so many franchise leagues around, it has affected international cricket. How do you see the way forward, especially in the context of certain New Zealand players becoming freelancers?
It is an interesting time for world cricket at the moment. There is a lot of chat around how we find the windows where international cricket is not touched so much. But it is becoming increasingly challenging with the number of franchise leagues around now. And players have more options, that is the reality of it, they have more options to go down that T20 route.
Personally, I am a purist, I love Test cricket. I would love to see somehow where Test cricket is valued as much as T20 cricket. Whether that is financially rewarding the players better, I am not sure exactly what the answer is. But I think T20 leagues are somewhat of a threat to cricket on a whole. Hopefully, everyone can get around the table and work out a calendar where both Test and franchise cricket can be played.
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