Captains reminiscence about World Cup 1992 MyZA

The scoreboard during the South Africa vs. England match at the 1992 Cricket World Cup 2nd semi final. Photo: The Post

While the fixture announcement of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 has started the countdown to the 11th edition of ICC’s flagship event, some of the captains who led their countries when Australia and New Zealand last staged the event in 1992 took a walk down memory lane and spoken candidly about their highs, lows and regrets from that tournament.

The event was won by Pakistan when Imran Khan’s side defeated Graham Gooch’s England in front of approximately 88,000 spectators at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). In the semi-finals, Pakistan had defeated New Zealand while England had the better of first-timers South Africa.

Imran, remembering the ICC Cricket World Cup 1992, said: “Winning the ICC Cricket World Cup 1992 was one of the biggest achievements of my cricketing career.”

Graham Gooch, reflecting on the ICC Cricket World Cup 1992, said that his side was the most consistent throughout the tournament before losing to the side that England should have put out much earlier from the competition.

“It was the last World Cup I played in and I captained the side. Looking back I’m proud of our performances throughout the competition, we were probably the form side during the tournament and played good cricket until the final when we didn’t have our best day.”

For Kepler Wessels, who led South Africa, the ICC Cricket World Cup 1992 was an “incredible experience”, as the side played its first major tournament after its return from isolation.

“Captaining South Africa during the World Cup in 1992 was an incredible experience. It was an emotional time in South Africa cricket and the way the whole country embraced the team and the tournament will remain with me forever.”