Ben Sawyer leaves job as New Zealand women's head coach after review
Ben Sawyer was first appointed in June 2022 • Getty Images
Ben Sawyer has left his role as head coach of the New Zealand women's team after four years at the helm. His contract, supposed to run till December 2026, was not renewed following a review process of the women's high performance structure.
"Being the White Ferns coach has been a huge honour and I'm really grateful to have had the opportunity to lead this group," Sawyer said in a statement. "This team means a lot to me and I'm really proud of what we've been able to achieve in the past four years.
"Although I'm disappointed to be leaving, I want to wish the team and NZC [New Zealand Cricket] all the best."
Related
End of an era for New Zealand with no fairytale finish
Satterthwaite to coach Canterbury in NZ domestic season
NZ domestic season to kick off on October 28
Sawyer was first appointed in June 2022. "A period of growth and success followed," NZC said, "as Sawyer fostered the young group's potential and significantly strengthened the structure and standards of the environment"
It was during Sawyer's time in charge that Melie Kerr took over as New Zealand's captain.
"We're hugely grateful for Ben and everything he's put into this team," Kerr said. "His preparation was second to none, he poured his heart and soul into the role and left no stone unturned trying to make the team better.
"Ben played a huge part in a defining moment for women's cricket in New Zealand. He showed a belief in us that helped propel the team to World Cup victory after a difficult few months and that's a testament to his character and leadership."
Under him, New Zealand won a bronze medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games and then won the T20 World Cup in Dubai in 2024. Most recently, though, New Zealand crashed out of the 2026 T20 World Cup in the group stage itself after winning just two of their five games.
"Ben leaves the team and women's pathways in a stronger position than when he joined us and has worked hard to develop a clear programme plan and structure that'll continue to support our aspiration of long-term sustainable success"
NZC head of women's high-performance development Liz Green
"Ben's overseen a period of considerable change and progression for the White Ferns and we're deeply appreciative of the commitment, professionalism and time he invested in the women's game," NZC's chief high-performance cricket officer Daryl Gibson said. "It was a difficult decision [to let Sawyer go] which was not made lightly, but it reflects our view that the next stage of the White Ferns journey requires a different leadership approach to support the future direction of the programme."
An interim head coach and team manager will travel to Australia next month for the T20I series.
"Ben leaves the team and women's pathways in a stronger position than when he joined us and has worked hard to develop a clear programme plan and structure that'll continue to support our aspiration of long-term sustainable success," NZC's head of women's high-performance development Liz Green said. "While I'm sad to see him depart, he does so with my full respect and gratitude for everything he's achieved, and the lasting legacy he leaves across the women's game in New Zealand."
The squad for the T20I series in Australia will be named early October and the process to recruit Sawyer's full-time successor will commence shortly, NZC said.
KioskNews shows a cleaned-up reading view extracted from the publisher’s page — the original always lives on their site, not ours.