By 1999 Zimbabwe had experienced some fleeting success at World Cups; upsetting Australia in 1983, and Eddo Brandes destroying England in 1992 being the standouts.

The era that followed those landmark wins however, is a beacon for Zimbabwe cricket. Through the 90s they gained test status and steadily built a competitive side. Heath Streak, the Flower brothers and Alistair Campbell were just a few of the players who drive this generation of cricket. 

1999 became Zimbabwe’s global coming out party as a team to be reckoned with, taking big scalps and getting to the business end of the tournament. This may well have been Zimbabwe cricket at its greatest. 

Andy Flower today may be better known as the coach who took England cricket to number 1 in the world, but in ‘99 he was the undisputed champion of this generation of Zimbabwe cricket. He  joins us to talk about the rise of Zimbabwe cricket, who was Neil Johnson, how the team peaked in 1999 and then how things went so wrong  in the country afterwards.