Rob Walter has called time on his coaching stint with South Africa’s white-ball teams, which brings a premature end to his four-year contract. After being signed in February 2023 under a contract extending until the conclusion of the 2027 ODI World Cup, Walter resigned just two years into the coaching role. Cricket South Africa (CSA) cited personal reasons behind his departure from the role, which are understood to be the stress of constant travel between his home country, New Zealand, and South Africa, as well as the mounting criticism over his underwhelming white-ball record.
During his tenure, Walter saw the Proteas play seven ODI and eight T20I series. Of these, the South African team only won four and one series, respectively. However, despite this middling record in bilateral series, his teams did incredibly well on the big stage. In multi-national tournaments, the side made it to at least the semi-finals in all three major ICC events played during his tenure, including the 2023 ODI World Cup, 2024 T20 World Cup, and the most recent, the 2025 Champions Trophy.
“Coaching the Proteas has been an incredible honour, and I am immensely proud of what we have achieved together,” Walter said in a CSA release while announcing his retirement. “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.”
With a T20 World Cup and an ODI World Cup scheduled in the next two years, the latter of which will be co-hosted by South Africa, the Proteas will be desperate to end their ICC trophy drought. Especially because they have already come tantalizingly close to winning trophies in recent ICC tournaments. However, for that to happen, they will need stability in both the team and the supporting staff. South Africa’s Director of Cricket, Enoch Nkwe, also emphasized this point and confirmed that Walter’s replacement will be contracted until the 2027 ODI World Cup.
“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,” Nkwe said. “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.”
Walter was exclusively the side’s white-ball coach, while the Test team remains under the coaching of Shukri Conrad. While CSA will announce Walter’s successor in due time, Conrad is one of the top contenders for the role. For now, though, the Proteas’ top priority will be the World Test Championship (WTC) final in June. Their next white-ball assignment is against West Indies in July, which gives CSA a few months to decide on their new coach.
