| In 1981 Zimbabwe
was elected an associate member of the ICC and two years later went to the
World Cup for the first time. Their
first match resulted in a breathtaking victory over Australia. At the ICC meeting of July 1992, the vote on whether to grant
Zimbabwe Test-playing status was a defining moment in Zimbabwe's
cricket history. If not passed, the
vote could have dire consequences for Zimbabwe's domestic cricket. With no prospect of playing Test matches,
senior players like Dave Houghton would most likely give up the game while
the most talented of the younger players would leave to play in South Africa
or for an English county. However, the
vote was passed with only England
abstaining, and Zimbabwe
was finally elevated to become a full ICC member with Test match status. John Hampshire, the former Yorkshire
and England Test batsman, was employed as coach at the start of the 1992-93
season to accompany the inexperienced national team on its first steps into
Test cricket. In October 1992 India came to Harare to play in the first Test on
Zimbabwean soil. Against all
expectations, the team competed strongly throughout the match and became the
first Test nation - apart from Australia - to avoid defeat in
its inaugural Test match. The season ended with a short, reciprocal visit to India, Zimbabwe's first Test cricket
tour abroad |