New Zealand’s long-serving batting coach Luke Ronchi is set to leave his role after accepting the head coach position with the Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League (BBL), New Zealand Cricket has confirmed. However, the 45-year-old will not depart immediately.
He will remain with the Black Caps for their multi-format home series against India in December before beginning his new coaching role in Australia. Ronchi, meanwhile replaces Cameron White as the head coach of the franchise, who will take charge of the Melbourne Stars now.
The former Kiwi keeper has already started assembling the rest of the support staff for the team, along with high-performance manager Clint McKay. It is to be noted, that under Ronchi, New Zealand had a highly successful six-year stint, that also includes a Test series win against India in India, where they ended up winning 0-3.
Luke Ronchi to Leave New Zealand After India Series
They also went on to win the inaugural WTC final in 2021, and also reached the final for the T20 World Cups in 2021, and 2026. To his CV, he also had a Champions Trophy 2025 final appearance, where they only lost to India. Not to forget, more recently they went on to win a Test series in England 2-1, which turned out to be the last-ever for Ben Stokes.
Talking about his coaching experience with the Black Caps, he said, “Coming back to the national set-up has been a dream come true for me and I’m immensely grateful to my fellow coaches and the players for the opportunity to work alongside them for all these years.”
“It has always been my goal to try and help this team and the batters perform at the highest level. Looking back, there have been some truly memorable moments that I’m proud to have been part of. I’ll be watching closely and wish everyone all the very best for the future,” he added.