It was a saddening display for the home fans as New Zealand were utterly smashed by Team India in their T20 tour, where Kohli and the team picked up a dominating 5-0 whitewash series victory. Add to that the 3-0 Test defeat against Australia, its all going wrong for the Black Caps in the recent past. While the team’s head coach Gary Stead is facing slack from supporters, former Kiwi skipper and legendary cricketer Jeremy Coney comes forward to criticise him for his current holiday trip with his family.
Even when New Zealand were looking to clinch victories in the third and fourth matches, their batsmen failed in the dead overs and India pulled off two back to back super over wins. Following the 5-0 T20 series defeat and while the team is looking to convert the ongoing ODI series into a win, Stead is out for seven days break to have some family time, and that has irked Jeremy Coney.
In a recent talk show with New Zealand’s sports broadcaster Radio Sport Breakfast, the former Black Caps skipper pointed a finger at Stead’s time away from the squad.
“This is probably the most important season we’ve had for 10 years, with no Zimbabwe, Bangladesh and West Indies to feast on. We’re facing the three big boys (Australia, India, and England). They were marmalised in Australia and it’s now five-zip at home. Wouldn’t you think the main coach and selector would be there?” Coney said in the show.
Stead, who succeeded the legendary Mike Hesson to take charge of the New Zealand cricket team in 2018, has been lacklustre in supervising the team management, according to Coney.
The 67 year old continued: “I’ve seen wayward bowling, mismanaged games resulting in losses, bungled run outs, I’ve seen the fielding coach away, the bowling coach away, the batting coach away.”
The 52 Test and 88 ODI cap holder went onto reprimand Stead for taking his time away from the team in a crucial moment like this, and even asked him to leave the job to work ‘in a hardware store’.
“If it is too much for them…you can go and get a job in a hardware store and see your family every night. It seems to me this is your job and this is the time of year when you really work.” Coney added.
Following the conclusion of India’s tour with a two match Test series in February, Kiwis will take on their neighbours again in back to back ODI and T20 series, before facing Scotland and Ireland in June.
Also read-
Read Shoaib Akhtar’s hilarious rant about New Zealand after the Kiwis are whitewashed by India
See which records were broken by Indian batsmen in the first ODI against New Zealand
