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The 1992 World Cup marked a turning point in World Cup history. The first held in the southern hemisphere, jointly between New Zealand and Australia, the tournament was greatly expanded. South Africa had rejoined the Test ranks, Zimbabwe had been given Test status, despite qualifying by winning the ICC Trophy in 1990, and thus the tournament consisted of the same eight teams that had contested the 1987 tourney, plus South Africa. Day/night cricket made its debut, along with the white ball and coloured clothing, and for the first time rain interruptions influenced the course of the tournament. With 9 teams a balanced schedule with two groups was not possible so each team played all the others once, with the top four advancing to the semi finals. This meant a greatly expanded tournament with 36 preliminary matches played over 4 weeks.

Preliminary round:-

22 February:

The first match of the tournament took place in Auckland where New Zealand defeated their co-hosts by 37 runs. A superb unbeaten century by Crowe supported by Rutherford (57) took New Zealand to 248. When Australia batted the innovative strategy of opening the bowling with the spinner, Patel paid off as he bowled his 10 overs for only 36 runs as well as capturing the vital wicket of Border. Boon carried on where he left off in the 1987 World Cup with a century, but Australia faltered against Larsen (3/30), their last 5 wickets falling for 12 runs.

England and India contested a close match, they first World Cup match played in day-night conditions, in Perth. Botham, promoted to open, failed but Gooch (51) and Smith (91) put on 110 for the 2nd wicket, and England reached 236. Shastri (top scorer with 57) and Srikkanth made a good start, but the middle order were restricted by tight bowling by Botham (2/27 in 10 overs, including the wicket of Tendulkar, making a useful 35 on his world Cup debut). India were all out in the final over, still 9 runs short of England's total.

23 February:

New Plymouth saw the two Test newcomers, Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka, face off. Zimbabwe must have been happy with their highest ever World Cup total of 312, based on a fine unbeaten century by Andy Flower, 52 from Arnott and a hard hitting 83* from Waller (Waller and Flower setting a World Cup partnership record for the 5th wicket). Sri Lanka chased what seemed an impossible target, but Mahanama (59) and Samarasekera (75) put on 129 for the 1st wicket, and 88* from Ranatunga took them to victory with 3 balls to spare in this, the highest scoring match in World Cup history.

The West Indies - Pakistan match was one-side, with Pakistan making 220/2 after batting first, Rameez Raja with an unbeaten century, and Javed Miandad with 57. West Indies made light work of this, with Lara playing a scintillating innings of 88 before retiring hurt, combining with Haynes (93*) and Richardson to set a World Cup opening partnership record, and a 10 wicket win.

25, 26 February:

New Zealand took on Sri Lanka, and won with ease. Sri Lanka, despite 80 from Mahanama made only 206, Harris (3/43) and Watson (3/37) leading the attack. Crowe failed but in a well paced innings, Wright (57), Jones (49) and Rutherford (65*) took New Zealand past Sri Lanka in the penultimate over.

South Africa made their World Cup debut in front of a packed house at the Sydney Cricket Ground in a day-night match. Keppler Wessels led the South Africans against Australia, who he had represented in the 1983 World Cup. The South Africans bowled and fielded superbly, led by Donald (3/34) and restricted Australia to 170. Wessels' 81* took South Africa to a 9 wicket victory with 3 overs in hand.

27 February:

The Pakistan-Zimbabwe game in Hobart was a bit of a mis-match. Aameer Sohail had an easy time against the Zimbabwe medium pacers, despite giving four chances in his 114, and Javed Miandad smashed 89 off 93 balls. Butchart took 3 of the 4 wickets to fall, but Pakistan's total of 254 looked too much for the Zimbabweans when faced with Wasim Akram's opening spell. Wasim took 3/23 off his 10 overs, and despite twin innings of 44 from Houghton and Waller, Zimbabwe were never close to meeting the run rate required.

The England-West Indies game on the same day was no closer. Fine bowling by Lewis (3/30) and DeFreitas (3/34) backed up by superb ground fielding had West Indies in trouble from the start, with Lara, Hooper and Richardson back in the pavilion with 36 on the board. Reeve and Botham were equally accurate, conceding only 53 from their 20 overs, and only Arthurton (54), with a late flourish (hitting Tufnell for two sixes) gave West Indies any sort of a target to bowl at. Botham and Smith fell cheaply, but then Gooch (65) and Hick (54 at close to a run a ball) took England to victory with 11 overs remaining.

28,29 February:

Only 2 balls were bowled at Mackay, as the India - Sri Lanka game was washed out. After rain, a helicopter was used to dry the ground, but a 20 overs barely got underway before the heavens opened again.

South Africa batted first on a slow Eden Park wicket, and could not get to terms with accurate New Zealand bowling. Peter Kirsten (90) played a patient innings, but the run-rate was never adequate. Crowe chose to give the new ball to Patel again and was rewarded with figures of 1/28 off his 10 overs, but Watson, Larsen and Harris were equally economical. John Wright was out of the team through injury, giving Greatbatch a chance. He seized it with both hands, thrashing the South African bowling all around the park in scoring 68 off 60 balls (3 sixes and nine fours). His opening partner Latham (60 off 69 balls) was not overshadowed, and when the first wicket fell at 114, only 17.5 overs had been bowled. New Zealand needed only 34.3 overs to complete a 7 wicket victory.

The West Indies bats made light work of the Zimbabwe bowling in their match at the Gabba, led by Lara with an elegant 72, opening the batting, and supported by Richardson (56) and Hooper (63). Brandes took 3 wickets but conceded 43 runs, and Jarvis was hammered for 71 runs from his 10 overs. The Zimbabwe innings got off to a bad start, with wickets falling, and Arnott retiring hurt with a cracked finger. Houghton and Shah made fifties, but Zimbabwe could not maintain anything like the scoring rate required to get close to the West Indies total.

1,2 March:

Both India and Australia desperately needed points from their game at the Gabba, and after a thrilling, pulsating, game, Australia won by the narrowest of margins. Australia started slowly with Taylor and Marsh, but the run rate accelerated when Jones came in, who batted well and positively for his 90. Kapil Dev and Prabhakar each took 3 wickets, and India set out looking for 238 to win. A brief rain interruption meant a loss of 3 overs, and using the rain rule then current, the three lowest scoring overs of the Australian innings were deducted, leaving a target of only 2 runs less in 47 overs. Shastri made a somewhat pedestrian start but Azharuddin was in top form with a sparkling 93. The turning point was Azharuddin's run-out with a direct hit from Border, and despite valiant efforts by the lower order, two more run-outs left India one tantalizing run short of a tie.

Rain intervened in Adelaide, apparently robbing England of a win over Pakistan. England had dismissed Pakistan for a meagre 74 in 40 overs, Pringle taking 3/8, and Botham, Defreitas and Small chipping in with 2 wickets each. Rain intervened, and England eventually were set 63 in just 16 overs and were 24/1 off 9 when rain prevented any further play.

South Africa needed a win against Sri Lanka but were foiled by excellent fielding, restricting them to under 200, and then a fine innings from Ranatunga. Wessels was steady for South Africa, but his 40 runs took 90 balls putting pressure on the other batsman. Peter Kirsten made the top score of 47 before holing out in desperation, and Anasuri picked up 3 wickets. Allan donald was in top form when the Sri Lankans batted with 3 wickets in his opening spell reducing Sri Lanka to 35/3. Mahanama with a careful 68, and Ranatunga with 63* off 73 balls saw Sri Lanka to victory.

3, 4 March:

It was surprising that any play was possible on a wet day at Napier, as New Zealand continued their excellent form against Zimbabwe, still looking for a win. Realising that rain would pay an important role, New Zealand went on the attack from the start. Their innings was interrupted three times by rain, but in between the crowd saw some thrilling batting against bowling that lacked length and direction at times. After losing Latham and Greatbatch for 25, Martin Crowe and Andrew Jones put on 129 in just 57 balls. Crowe's fifty came up in 31 balls, and New Zealand scored at close to 8 per over in amassing 162. Zimbabwe after some hard work with the calculator were set 154 off 18 overs. Wickets tumbled as they tried to meet an almost impossible run rate, with Harris and Larsen each capturing 3 wickets, and New Zealand won their fourth straight match.

The rivals India and Pakistan met at the Sydney cricket ground, in a day-night encounter. India led by the youngsters Jadeja (replacing Shastri), Kambli and Tendulkar (54*) set a target of 217, Mushtaq Ahmed taking 3 wickets but conceding 59 runs. The Indians bowled and fielded superbly, led by Kapil Dev who added 2 wickets to his rapid 35, and Prabhakar, with 2 wickets (conceding only 22 runs from his 10 overs). Aameer Sohail (62) and Javed Miandad (40 off 110 balls) batted carefully, maybe too carefully as Pakistan fell behind the run rate, and wickets tumbled when they tried to accelerate. Srinath took two wickets at the death to leave India winners by 43 runs.

5 March:

West Indies poor form continued against South Africa at Christchurch. Kirsten (56) well supported by 5 other bats in the twenties, led South Africa to a modest 200/8 off their 50 overs. Marshall with 2/26 off 10 overs was the pick of the bowlers. The West Indies were devastated by Pringle's opening spell (4/11), with Lara, Richardson, Hooper and Arthurton back in the pavilion and only 19 runs on the board. Logie (61) provided resistance, but Kuiper, Snell and Donald finished them off for a paltry 136. West Indies with only 1 win from 4 games were looking at an early departure from the tournament.

Two other old rivals met at the SCG, as Australia, desperate for a win, took on England. They, however, ran into Ian Botham, who had a quiet tournament up to this point. Moody (51) was the only bat to build an innings, and tight bowling by DeFreitas and Lewis set the scene for Botham who took 4/31 as the Australians tried to up the scoring rate. A target of 172 was soon seen to be inadequate as Botham (53 in 77 balls) and Gooch (58) put on 107 for the first wicket. England won by 8 wickets with 9 overs to spare.

7 March:

Rain again, as India played the winless Zimbabwe at Hamilton. India made 203 off 32 overs, Tendulkar top scoring with a sparkling 81, Traicos and Burmester each taking 3 wickets. The rain rules allocated Zimbabwe just 19.1 overs to try and score 159, and they fell 55 runs short despite only losing one wicket.

The lovely Adelaide Oval saw tight bowling by the Australians, as they took on the Sri Lankans. McDermott and Whitney conceded only 54 runs from their 20 overs, and as the pressure mounted four run outs left Sri Lanka with only 189 from 50 overs. Australia cruised to an easy and much needed win, Moody (57) and Marsh (60) putting on 120 for the first wicket.

8, 9 March:

New Zealand continued their excellent form with a 5 wicket win at Auckland. Patel opened the bowling, and West Indies were only able to score 19 runs off his 10 overs of off-spin. Lara top-scored with 52, but again accurate bowling backed by superb fielding restricted them to 206. Greatbatch (63) got New Zealand off to a good start, and then an imperious 81* from Crowe took them past the West Indies total with 9 balls to spare.

South Africa managed to bat out their full 50 overs against Pakistan, Hudson (54) playing the only innings of note. Pakistan were 72/2 in the 22nd over when the rain came down. When they resumed the target was only 15 runs less but in 14 overs fewer. Kuiper took 3 wickets as the Pakistanis hit out, and an easy win for South Africa followed, amongst much discussion of the fairness of the rain rule.

The next day saw a one sided match between England and Sri Lanka at Ballarat. England made 280, with runs from Botham (47), Hick (41), Fairbrother (63) and Stewart (59). Lewis (4/30) dismissed numbers 1-4 in his opening spell, and sri Lanka never recovered.

10 March:

India's bad luck with the weather continued in yet another rain affected match with the West Indies, although only a few overs were lost. India made a good start, with their second wicket falling at 102 following a good partnership between Srikkanth (40) and Azharuddin (61). Scoring was difficult, particularly against Ambrose (2/24 off 10 overs), and Cummins (4/33) took advantage of the Indian efforts to push the run rate along. After a brief rain interruption, West Indies were set a target of 194 in 46 overs, which they achieved with 4 overs to spare, Arthurton top-scoring with 58.

Zimbabwe's miserable World Cup continued with their 6th consecutive loss, this time to South Africa. Their batting let them down against with McMillan and Kirsten picking up 3 wickets each and Eddo Brandes' 20 being the top score. South Africa took their time knocking off the runs, with Wessels (70) and Kirsten (62) leading the way.

11, 12 March:

Australia's hopes of reaching the semis took a big blow when they lost to Pakistan at Perth. Aameer Sohail with a solid 70, supported by Javed Miandad took Pakistan to 220, a not particularly intimidating total. Aaqib Javed (3/21) made the early breakthrough, and despite some resistance from Jones, Boon and Steve Waugh, Australia were never close, all out 48 runs short.

New Zealand's good run continued, guaranteeing themselves a place in the semi-finals with a 5 wicket win over India. Patel bowled another economical spell with the new ball, picking up 2 wickets, and despite 84 from Tendulkar, and 55 from Azharuddin, India made just 230. Greatbatch (73) and Jones (67) took advantage of some erratic opening bowling, and by the time they were out, New Zealand were well ahead of the run rate, and had no trouble passing India's total.

England also secured a semi-final place with a win over South Africa in a rain affected game in Melbourne. Wessels (85) and Hudson (79) put on 151 for the 1st wicket, and England faced 237 to win. Rain stopped play with England 62/0 off 12 overs, and under the increasingly unpopular rain rule then were set 226 off 41 overs. Stewart with 77 led the way, and then a superb 75* by Fairbrother gave England victory off the penultimate ball.

13, 14 March:

West Indies hit form, but too late, with a 91 run win over Sri Lanka. A punishing 110 by Simmons led them to 268, with Hatharusinghe taking 4 wickets, albeit at the expense of 57 runs from his 8 overs. Sri Lanka found it impossible to score fast enough from Ambrose (2/24 off 10) and Hooper (2/19 off 10), and lost heavily.

Zimbabwe's misery continued with another one-sided loss to Australia. Traicos bowled his 10 overs for 30 runs, but the Australian batsman otherwise scored freely, with Boon (48), Jones (54), and the Waugh twins (Mark 66*, Steve 55) all contributing. Zimbabwe's batting was again not up to the task, 23 being the top score, and Whitney bowling his 10 overs for just 15 runs (as well as 2 wickets).

15 March:

The two most successful teams in the preliminary round met in Wellington, with England batting first. Patel again impressed, opening the bowling, and England scored at only 4/over, Hick's 56 being the top score. Jones (78) and Crowe (73*) took the attack to the England bowlers, and New Zealand won in the 41st over. New Zealand assured themselves of a first place finish, with their 7th straight win.

South Africa playing their final game needed a win to ensure a semi-final place, and played India in a 30 over/ side game after rain had prevented a prompt start. India scored at 6/over, led by Azharuddin (79), and Kapil Dev (42). McMillan and Kuiper both bowled well, and restricted the run-rate in the middle part of the innings. Hudson and Kirsten got South Africa off to a great start with an opening partnership of 128, and despite falling wickets, got home on the first ball of the final over.

Pakistan also gave themselves an outside chance of a semi-final place by beating Sri Lanka in Perth, with a good all-round performance. Sri Lanka batted well against tight bowling, but no-one was able to build a major innings. Pakistan needed 213 to win, and thanks to half-centuries from Javed Miandad and Saleem Malik won in the final over.

18 March:

New Zealand and England were already assured of first and second place, but the other two qualifiers were still in question as the last day of the marathon preliminary round commenced. Pakistan gave themselves an excellent chance by handing New Zealand their first loss. The Pakistan bowlers hit top form, and Wasim Akram (4/32) and Mushtaq Ahmed (10 overs for a paltry 18 runs) had the New Zealand bats struggling throughout. Greatbatch made 42, but the rest of the batting failed, and a total of only 166 (helped by 42 extras) was not enough. Rameez Raja tore into the New Zealand bowling, making an astonishing 119* out of the 167 required.

England had already qualified, but that took little away from Zimbabwe, who thanks to Eddo Brandes, achieved their first win of the tournament. This looked most unlikely when Zimbabwe totalled only 134, but Brandes ripped the heart out of the England batting with 4/21, and tight bowling (Traicos bowling his 10 overs for 16 runs) and keen fielding gave Zimbabwe a thrilling consolation victory.

West Indies with a win would have advanced to the semi-finals, but failed to beat Australia. Boon made exactly 100 in their 216, and only Lara (run out for 70) played with any confidence. Reid bowled 10 overs for 26 runs, and Whitney took four wickets, but all to no avail, as both the pre-tournament favourites failed to advance.

New Zealand finished top of the table, England 2nd, and South Africa and Pakistan in 3rd and 4th places respectively.

1st Semi Final:-

New Zealand had the advantage of playing at home, and were confident entering the semi-final against Pakistan, despite their preliminary round defeat. They batted well, let by a superb 83 ball 91 from Crowe, and supported by a Rutherford fifty. Crowe was particularly severe on Imran Khan who conceded 59 from his 10 overs. 268 looked like a winning total- apart from the Sri Lanka - Zimbabwe match no side had successfully chased anything close to that in the tournament. Pakistan however, paced their reply perfectly, with steady 44s from Imran Khan and Aameer Sohail building a platform from which Javed Miandad (57*), and then memorably Inzamam-ul-haq launched their assault. Inzi made 60 from just 37 balls, and when he was out Moin Khan partnered Javed as Pakistan reached their first ever World Cup final.

2nd Semi Final:-

The bizarre climax to this game possibly resulted in a change in cricket rain rules for the better, but that was no consolation to South Africa, or the crowd, deprived of a thrilling finish. England had set a tough target, after rain interruptions had reduced their allocation to 45 overs. Hick with 83 off 90 balls had batted superbly, and with apart from Gooch, all the other bats contributed useful runs taking England to 252. South Africa, however, were not intimidated, and were well up with the run rate throughout their innings. Hudson got things going with a quick 46, and Rhodes put South Africa in the hunt with 43 off 38 balls. McMillan and Richardson were at the wicket, and looking comfortable when rain fell after 5 balls of the 42nd over with South Africa needing 22 to win off 19 balls. Two overs were lost, but under the rain rule the target did not change. South Africa were faced with the impossible task of scoring the remaining runs off one ball, and England advanced to the final in circumstances not even they were happy with.

The Final:-

The final was played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground under cloudless skies in front of a huge crowd of 85,000+, one of the largest attendances on record. Pakistan won the toss and batted, but were soon in trouble against Pringle. Rameez Raja was caught from a no-ball, but in the next over Pringle induced an edge from Aameer Sohail, taken comfortably by Stewart, and Rameez soon followed. This brought together the captain, Imran Khan, and the vastly experienced Javed Miandad, and they set about repairing the damage. Taking no chances (particularly against Pringle who finished with the excellent figures of 10-2-22-3) they scored at a modest pace, 50 coming up in the 21st over, and 100 in the 31st. Imran Khan, who had been dropped by Gooch when on 10, paced his innings admirably, and together with Javed Miandad put the pressure on the England bowlers as Pakistan entered the last 20 overs. The partnership was worth 139 when Javed Miandad fell to a poorly executed reverse sweep for 59. Inzamam-ul-haq took up the attack, and after Imran was caught off Botham for an admirable 70, was joined by Wasim Akram who hit hard, they added 51 off the last 5 overs to take Pakistan to 249.

Pakistan got off to a great start when Botham fell for 0, soon followed by Stewart. The opening pair of Wasim Akram and Aaqib Javed was extremely effective, Aaqib returning figures of 10-2-27-2. Gooch and Hick tried to emulate Imran and Javed, but Hick, always vulnerable to spin, was adjudged lbw to Mushtaq Ahmed, and shortly afterwards Gooch top edged a sweep to the same bowler, and England were 69/4 in the 21st over. Fairbrother and Lamb put together the best partnership of the England innings using their expertise to keep the runs coming without taking risks. The run rate was climbing however, and with 20 overs to go England needed 150. With the situation getting desperate, Wasim Akram effectively decided the match in the course of an over, dismissing Lamb and Lewis with consecutive balls. Fairbrother fought hard, falling on 62 to Aaqib, and the tail hit bravely, but England never recovered leaving Pakistan the World Cup champions by 22 runs.

England were bitterly disappointed at failing yet again in a World Cup final, and New Zealand and South Africa also had cause for regrets. It was overall a fine World Cup for the New Zealand team, despite their semi-final loss, and their excellent fielding, aggressive batting, and innovative captaincy marked a high point in their cricket history. South Africa were robbed of a chance at the final by the rain rules, and it would be little consolation to know that their semi-final loss was the impetus towards a better, and fairer way of dealing with rain affected matches. Pakistan were worthy winners. They started the tournament slowly, but improved constantly, and under the superb leadership of Imran Khan, played as a team - something Pakistan sides have not always done. Wasim Akram was the tournament's leading wicket-taker (also leading the tournament in the less worthy statistics of no-balls and wides), and Javed Miandad scored 437 runs. Martin Crowe was the player of the tournament and the leading batsman, averaging over 100 and scoring most runs. New Zealand also produced the most economical bowler, with Patel conceding only 245 runs from 79 overs.

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