Zaahier Adams
Rob Walter is a good human being. He greets each member of the media personally before an engagement. He checks up on how youre doing, asks about your family, and seems genuinely interested in your life.
Thats, of course, is not his job though. He picks cricket teams with the intention of winning matches. Under the current structure, he is solely responsible for both these tasks due to Cricket South Africa having done away with the conventional structure that comprises a group of selectors headed by a convenor. In simple terms, the buck stops with Walter.
It was not so long ago that Walter came within touching distance of becoming the first Proteas coach to lead the mens team to the holy grail of a T20 World Cup trophy. He is already the only coach ever to have guided the Proteas past a World Cup semi-final. On the basis of this, Walter would have believed that he had done enough to be granted indemnity for some time.
But thats simply not how professional sport works. Its all about the last result. And Walter need not look too far either to see how former England white-ball coach Matthew Mott had his four-year contract terminated midway through despite presiding over Englands 2022 T20 World Cup triumph.
