The resignation of Luke Ronchi marks a change in the New Zealand Cricket coaching structure with the Blackcaps batting coach set to take on the head man at the Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League.
Hailing from the era when Peter Fulton was the batting coach, Ronchi will be hanging up his boots after New Zealand’s next home bilateral against India from October 22-27 November. He also ends a four-year period of service in which he helped to settle and improve New Zealand’s batting unit on all formats.
The transition is a logical progression in a coach’s career, moving from a specialist position to full responsibility. Ronchi has the opportunity to take a leading role in the strategy, squad management and match play of the Melbourne Renegade T20 franchise in the franchise-based T20 environment provided by the Melbourne Renegades opportunity.
It’s a transitional period for New Zealand Cricket. The board has stated that a replacement decision will come in time, but that they are not moving toward restructuring in a hasty manner. The change, however, means that there is a shortage of batting leadership in the lead up to future internationals, leaving succession planning a priority.
From a larger perspective, the move is part of a trend towards extremely commercial, visible and shorter competitive cycles in franchise leagues such as the Big Bash League, which continues to draw the best coaches.
While not immediately game-changers for the Blackcaps, Ronchi’s departure does bring medium-term changes to the team, as it will be a defined exit process. His immediate move will be watched closely as he moves into a head coaching situation where there is increased accountability and expectations for performance.
The development demonstrates a trend that is gaining momentum in international coaching: coaching ecosystems more and more tangling with the economics and opportunities in franchise cricket.
