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Sports Reporter
GRANT Flower has backed Zimbabwe to get past the first round group stages of the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup which gets underway in New Zealand and Australia next month.

The Zimbabweans will get their tournament underway with a tough duel against South Africa, the team that has always carried the potential of being champions, but has somehow perfected the art of choking at the big stage.

Flower, a former batting star for the Chevrons who is now enjoying success as a batting coach for Pakistan, said he was confident that Zimbabwe would move into the later stages of the tournament Down Under.

Speaking to the official 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup website, Flower said Zimbabwe had the players to rise to the occasion at the biggest stage of them all.

The Chevrons are under a new coach, Dav Whatmore, who replaced Steve Mangongo after a disastrous tour of Bangladesh where they were whitewashed in both the ODI and Test series.

The Zimbabweans will face different conditions in Australia and New Zealand, although their last tour of New Zealand was a disaster as they were bowled out twice in one day in a Test match.

Flower, however, believes that Zimbabwe will punch above their weight at the World Cup and was very complimentary to the country he represented as a player and a team he also coached as a specialist batting coach.

“I would like to think we can go through to the later stages,” Flower said in a video recording for the official 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup.

“I think we definitely have the players to do that, but it’s obviously about how the guys will do under pressure.

“The World Cup if the biggest stage and time will tell.”

Flower also had some tips for the Zimbabwe team and how they can be able to punch above their weight Down Under.

“Get there early, climatise, play some good and hard cricket and probably not think too much and just enjoy the pressure.”

He said he enjoyed his time in the Zimbabwe team.

“I loved my time in Zimbabwe; there were some great memories, good people,” said Flower.

“We did not have a group of seasoned professionals at the time, some people had full-time employment, there were some difficulties within the country, economic problems, etc, a small population, but our biggest thing was camaraderie and team spirit.

“That brought us together and that’s why we ended up with some good results between the hardships.”

Flower also spoke about his World Cup memories.

“It’s a huge privilege to be going to the World Cup to represent your country,” Flower said.

“My best moments were beating South Africa at Chelmsford (1999 ICC Cricket World Cup), in England, at the World Cup and getting through to the Super Six and from what I can remember is that we got our calculations against Pakistan wrong at the Oval.

“We did well in South Africa and we had to beat Sri Lanka, I think, in the quarter-finals, and we didn’t; I had great memories and I look forward to the next one.”

Flower also remembers the heroes of ’83 when Zimbabwe, making their debut at the World Cup in England, famously beat Australia.

“I just remember sitting in the lounge at home with my parents and my brother and listening to it on the radio and it was magnificent to hear of the victory,” said Flower.

“We were really young that time and it was very inspiring and since then we wanted to be professional cricketers.

“I just remember everyone talking about it (the win over Australia) the next day and the days after and listening to the names of Fletcher etc and all the good players of that time and it was just great you know.”