Andy Flower

Andy Flower Biography

Not only did Andy Flower score 4,794 Test runs — by far the most by a Zimbabwean — none of his countrymen came remotely close to his batting average of 51.54. While Adam Gilchrist was probably more impactful, Flower was perhaps the more prolific of the two — that too without the advantage of facing the Zimbabwean bowling attack.

Indeed, there was a time when Flower carried the Zimbabwe batting single-handedly on his shoulders, often keeping wickets and sometimes leading them. He captained them to their maiden Test victory, against Pakistan at Harare in 1994-95: he scored 156 in the match and took 3 catches behind the stumps.

There have been so many outstanding innings in his illustrious career that it is almost impossible to pick a few.

Against Sri Lanka in 1999-00 he walked out at 0 for 3 after Nuwan Zoysa had taken a hat-trick and scored a calm 74. On a deteriorating Queen’s Park Oval pitch in the same season he scored a gritty 113 when nobody from either side got a fifty.

But all of that paled in comparison compared to his exploits on the India tour of 1999-00, where he scored 183*, 70, 55, and 232*. This was a part of a series of fifties in at least 7 consecutive innings — a record that has been equalled but never bettered.

The magnum opus came the year after, at Harare. After South Africa scored 600 for 3, Flower batted for almost five hours for his 142 in a team score of 286. Asked to follow-on, Zimbabwe scored 391 and lost by an innings, but South Africa could not conquer Flower: he remained unbeaten on 199.

Flower scored an unbeaten 115 in his first ODI, and remains the only one to score a hundred on ODI debut in a World Cup match.

During the 2003 World Cup he and Henry Olonga donned black armbands before their first match of the tournament, against Namibia, as a form of protest against the Robert Mugabe regime. He quit on a high, scoring 332 runs at 47; in fact, his lowest score in the tournament was 22.

He took up a career with Essex, where he was joined by brother Grant. Andy Flower was appointed Assistant Coach of England in 2007, and a chain of events witnessed him rise to the post of Coach, then Team Director. During his tenure England won three Ashes contests, won the 2010 World T20, and reached the No. 1 spot in ICC rankings.

Flower stepped down as England coach after the 2013-14 Ashes debacle in Australia. He is currently Head Coach of England Lions and batting coach of Peshawar Zalmi.

In 2011 he was awarded the OBE for contributions to sport.

Abhishek Mukherjee

Andy Flower Batting & Fielding Averages

Career

Avg

100s

50s

Test

ODIs

T20s

World Cup

Andy Flower Bowling Averages

Career	M	B	R	W	Avg	EC	SR	5WI	10WM	BBI	BBM
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ODIs	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
T20s	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
World Cup	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--		--