Laura Wolvaardt is set to be appointed as South Africa women’s skipper in a permanent role. The 24-year-old took on the mantle in an interim capacity for the series against Pakistan and New Zealand in early 2023.
It is understood that when Wolvaardt took on the role of the skipper, she took it on a temporary basis so she could assess if taking on the responsibility would affect her batting performances or not. However, after the 24-year-old continued her sensational form, it has been reported by ESPNcricinfo that Wolvaardt is ready to take on the responsibility full-time.
Wolvaardt is expected to be named the permanent skipper when South Africa women take on Bangladesh women at home in December 2023. Apart from the big change, the series against Bangladesh will also be the final one for the current coaching staff, which is led by Hilton Moreeng.
We are still finalising a couple of things: Enoch Nkwe
With Moreeng’s tenure coming to an end, Cricket South Africa has been quite active in their search for a new coaching staff. The new coach is set to be announced before South Africa tours Australia in early 2024.
“We had interviews last week, and we are still finalising a couple of things. As soon as we are done with the post-interview process, we will be able to make an announcement,” Enoch Nkwe, CSA’s director of cricket, was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. “The current coaching team will carry on until the end of December, but we want to give clarity as soon as possible because it will impact the Australian tour.”
The appointment of the head of women’s cricket, who will be reporting to Nkwe, is set to be decided as well. Speaking of the same, Nkwe stated that they want someone who can take up the role long-term.
“The head of women’s cricket [role] has taken a while [to finalise]. We want to make sure the person that is going to take that position is not short-term, we’ve just professionalised the domestic structure and there are plans within the high performance to get a South Africa A women’s side over the next 12 months, so we have the same structure as the men’s. The women’s structure is really growing nicely and we are really excited about it,” Nkwe said.