Former Proteas batsman Stephen Cook has welcomed Lions head coach Enoch Nkwe’s appointment as interim team director of the Proteas.

Nkwe will fill the new interim role for the September and October tour of India. A full-time appointment will be made thereafter. The post of team director was introduced after head coach Ottis Gibson and team manager Mohammed Moosajee’s roles were dissolved this month.

‘The Proteas are clearly in transition and Enoch is definitely the right guy for that sort of team. Certain teams work really well with certain coaches,’ Cook, who has played and worked alongside Nkwe at the Lions, told the Citizen.

‘If the role is more of a manager, then Enoch fits that perfectly because management is his strength. If the requirements of the job are to get all the players on the same page, to make sure the team has the right culture, then Enoch’s your man.’

The decision to not renew Gibson’s tenure was accompanied by the exit of spin-bowling coach Claude Henderson, fielding coach Justin Ontong and batting coach Dale Benkenstein. Nkwe’s support staff has not yet been appointed.

‘Enoch is not going to teach you how to cover drive, even though his knowledge of the game is great – he’ll bring in guys to help with that,’ added Cook, who averaged under 34 across 11 Tests between 2016 and 2017.

‘The success or failure of the coach always depends on the people and players he has around him, but I’m sure we will see growth in those players. Enoch will bring discipline and ensure there is buy-in in terms of a common goal.’

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