OPINION: Winston Churchill once said: "To improve is to change, to be perfect is to change often."
Don't get me wrong, I'm by no means calling Gary Stead, Winston Churchill. As successful as he or she may be, a cricket coach can hardly compare to one of the greatest political figures of all time, who dragged his country from the brink of defeat to winning a war.
Nor do I think that his actions - or one in particular - makes Stead or this World Cup Blackcaps squad perfect, as the quote would suggest. They'll admit that they're not.
What it does do is show how willing Stead and his fellow selectors are to accept they need to make change - to put their hands up and accept that what they've tried, just hasn't worked.
Last November, Martin Guptill opted out of his NZ Cricket contract. At the time, he said he still hoped to be at this year’s tournament.
If Guptill was being realistic, while the ship hadn't sailed yet, the sails were well and truly up, and the ship starting to leave the harbour. The selectors had raised their flags and signalled their intent to provide Finn Allen with opportunities and they did exactly that... arguably, for the perfect amount of time.
Seemingly, Allen was given a license to go out and play with complete freedom. The keys had been handed over and he was allowed to drive the car as aggressively as he wanted - foot to the floor, full throttle, no concerns around saving gas.
Had it paid off, we could've seen Allen play a similar role with the bat - leadership, the obvious difference as well - as we did from Brendon McCullum at the 2015 edition.
Go out and have a crack. If it works, brilliant, the platform’s been set and it allows the rest of the order to go out and pace their innings.
If it doesn’t, oh well, it will soon.
This may be a tad harsh, but it just hasn’t worked. It may have been smarter to keep him on a restricted license, before allowing the full.
In the past year, Allen's averaged 22.5 in one-day international cricket, with just two fifties. His overall career average isn't much better, at less than 30 in his 19 matches. At times, his shot selection leaves any fan simply shaking their head and asking, through frustrated whispers or screams, why.
He’ll play for New Zealand again, just not at this World Cup.
Instead, the man tasked to replace him and partner Devon Conway at the top of the order boasts a far more impressive record.
Long was seen as only a middle-order batter, Will Young averages just under 47, with two centuries from his 17 ODIs, but it's not just his numbers - it's the way he goes about his innings.
At 90.20, his strike rate isn't much lower than Allen's (94.67), so you don’t lose too much, other than the instant fireworks out of the top of the order, which quickly fizzle out. Instead, it's a slightly longer and slower burn.
Put simply, Young bats time. In more than half his last 15 knocks, he's faced 30 or more deliveries. That sort of patience and willingness at the crease, and obvious smart decision-making with shot selection, while regularly turning over the strike, will be vital on, at times, slow Indian pitches.
Stead could easily have dug his heels stubbornly into the Sumner sand and stick with Allen. He and the selectors could have used the excuse that they'd invested all that time, so it would be a waste to drop him now, especially before a global tournament.
Instead, he and his fellow selectors have opted for humility. They've stuck their hands up and acknowledged something has to change - and it has.
Does that mean they got it wrong in the first place? Maybe, but what would've been even more wrong would be to persist with Allen. Should Allen's underwhelming and inconsistent form have continued, it would've resulted in seismic criticism from back home that could be heard and felt in India.
Young isn't guaranteed to have success. He'll have games where he misses out, all batters do - all cricketers do - but other coaches, not just in cricket, could learn from the humility and willingness to opt for change, which was clearly needed.
That's leadership.
I highly doubt Stead will whip out a 'V for Victory' if the Blackcaps win the World Cup, but their decision around Finn Allen certainly deserves a tip of the Homburg hat.
Alex Chapman is a Newshub sports reporter
