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The International Cricket Council (ICC) has expressed satisfaction with Zimbabwe’s progress in upgrading venues earmarked for the 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, following an inspection visit led by the governing body’s events head, Sarah Edgar, which concluded last Saturday.
The delegation assessed facilities in Harare, Bulawayo and Victoria Falls as Zimbabwe steps up preparations to co-host the global showpiece alongside South Africa and Namibia.
Edgar said the improvements made over the past year had been encouraging, particularly in ground preparation and other essential infrastructure required to bring the venues up to World Cup standards.
“We’ve been really impressed with the progress that’s been done on a lot of the baseline elements to get the grounds to the standard that we need for Cricket World Cup.
“We understood the baseline of where we were, and I think over the past year you can really see the improvements that have gone in on the ground preparation and the other elements that are really going to enhance the grounds,” said Edgar.
Zimbabwe is preparing to host matches at the tournament for the first time since the 2003 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, which the country co-hosted with South Africa and Kenya.
The country’s experience in staging international tournaments, including the recent ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier and the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup, has provided a foundation for preparations for the 2027 edition.
Victoria Falls emerged as one of the exciting projects on the itinerary, with Edgar believing the venue could offer international supporters a unique experience by combining cricket with one of the world’s leading tourist destinations.
“Victoria Falls in particular, it’s a really exciting project,” she said.
“I think the international fans are going to be in for a real treat to go to Vic Falls, not only for the ground itself, which is going to be a very nice finished product, but for the actual place itself.
“It’s a fantastic tourist destination, so that will be something new for international fans as well,” she said.
Edgar said the gradual improvements to existing facilities in Harare and Bulawayo have also been encouraging, with particular progress made in areas that will support tournament operations and television coverage.
“The gradual improvements that have been made have been really, really good.
“The broadcast areas are much simpler to navigate, for example, with some of the enhancements that have been done,” she said.
