The tour took place in November and December 1992. New Zealand had toured Zimbabwe immediately before flying to Sri Lanka to play three Test matches and three One Day Internationals (ODIs), a series of matches which Wisden described as being intended as "a confidence-boosting exercise to develop some of New Zealand's emerging players".[2] Following the suicide bombing one Test match was cancelled and a number of replacement players joined the tour party. Sri Lanka won the Test series 1–0, with one match drawn, and the ODI series 2–0, with the first ODI ending without a result following heavy rain.[2]
Tour party
A fifteen-man squad had been announced on 4 September for both the tour of Zimbabwe and the subsequent tour of Sri Lanka, with the side's established wicket-keeperIan Smith having retired following the 1992 Cricket World Cup. Before the tour of Zimbabwe began two players, Chris Cairns and Danny Morrison, were replaced due to injuries, with Simon Doull and Mark Haslam called into the side. Doull was injured during the tour of Zimbabwe and was replaced by Chris Pringle for the Sri Lankan leg of the tour. The side was captained by Martin Crowe, with Andrew Jones as vice-captain. The tour manager was Leif Dearsley.[2][3]
Following the bombing in Colombo, which occurred close to the New Zealand team's hotel, the team considered abandoning the tour. A vote initially split the players and Peter McDermott, the chairman of the New Zealand Cricket Board, flew to the country to negotiate with them.[4]Wisden reported that McDermott was concerned about compensation that would need to be paid to the Sri Lankan Cricket Board if the tour was cancelled and was under pressure from the New Zealand government which wasiaming to improve trade-relations with Sri Lanka.[2][3] He convinced enough players to continue the tour, although Crowe was critical of the decision and considered that he had been directed to continue as captain against his wishes.[5][6]
Five players, Greatbatch, Larsen, Latham, Patel and Watson, chose to leave the tour and return to New Zealand, as did the team coach Warren Lees. They were replaced by Grant Bradburn, Michael Owens, Justin Vaughan and veteran batsman John Wright, who had previously made himself unavailable for the tour. Crowe took over as the main coach for the team.[2][6] Owens and Vaughan were the only uncapped players on the tour; both made their international debut in the first Test match.[b][7]
Sri Lanka were captained by Arjuna Ranatunga throughout the tour.
Tour itinerary
The tour was originally scheduled to include three Test matches, with matches due to be played at Kandy from 21 to 26 November, Moratuwa from 5 to 10 December and at Colombo from 12 to 17 December.[8] Following the suicide bombing in Colombo this was reduced to two Tests, with no match played at Kandy and the dates of the other matches on the tour changed. A three-day warm up match which was scheduled to start on 17 November, the day after the bombing, was cancelled and replaced by two one-day matches against a Sri Lankan Cricket Board XI.[9][10]
The New Zealand team flew from Zimbabwe to Singapore before transferring to Sri Lanka.[3]
Test series
The revised two-match Test series was won 1–0 by Sri Lanka, with the first Test drawn.
Following heavy rain Sri Lanka's target was reduced to 67 runs in 20 overs. The match was abandoned after 10.2 overs of the Sri Lankan innings due to a wet outfield
^Lee A (1992) England tour in doubt, The Times, 17 November 1992, p. 40. (Available online at The Times Digital Archive (subscription required). Retrieved 2022-07-29.)
^N Zealand opt to continue tour, The Times, 19 November 1992, p. 46. (Available online at The Times Digital Archive (subscription required). Retrieved 2022-07-29.)
^ abCrowe says he was ordered to carry on, The Times, 20 November 1992, p. 44. (Available online at The Times Digital Archive (subscription required). Retrieved 2022-07-29.)
^Cricket, The Times, 27 November 1992, p. 38. (Available online at The Times Digital Archive (subscription required). Retrieved 2022-07-29.)
^Streeton R (1992) Zimbabwe's troubles cloud Test baptism, The Times, 17 October 1992, p. 32. (Available online at The Times Digital Archive (subscription required). Retrieved 2022-07-29.)
^Streeton R (1992) S Africa call up extra fast bowler, The Times, 18 November 1992, p. 42. (Available online at The Times Digital Archive (subscription required). Retrieved 2022-07-29.)
