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Former West Indies fast-bowling great Courtney Walsh has been appointed as the bowling coach of the Zimbabwe men's cricket team, with Zimbabwe Cricket confirming the decision following its board meeting held on June 23. The appointment was officially announced on July 1 as Zimbabwe continues to strengthen its coaching setup after an encouraging run of results in international cricket.

Walsh had earlier worked with Zimbabwe as a bowling consultant during the ICC Men's T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka this year. His role has now been made permanent after the team reached the Super Eights, defeating Australia and Sri Lanka during the group stage and securing qualification for the 2028 tournament.

The appointment comes days after Zimbabwe registered their biggest-ever Test victory, defeating Bangladesh by an innings and 85 runs in Harare in Richard Ngarava's first Test as captain.

While Walsh joins the backroom staff, Zimbabwe Cricket has opted to retain the rest of its senior coaching group under head coach Justin Sammons.

Dion Ebrahim will continue as assistant coach responsible for batting, while Stuart Matsikenyeri remains in charge of fielding and lower-order batting. Former Zimbabwe all-rounder Chamu Chibhabha has also been integrated into the senior setup as part of the board's succession planning strategy, working alongside team manager Dilip Chouhan.

At the age-group level, former Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura has retained his role as head coach of the Zimbabwe Under-19 men's team.

The latest appointments reflect Zimbabwe Cricket's emphasis on continuity while adding international experience to its coaching structure.

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Walsh retired in 2001 after one of the most distinguished fast-bowling careers in cricket history. He became the first bowler to claim 500 Test wickets, finishing with 519 wickets in 132 Tests and another 227 wickets in 205 One-Day Internationals.

He formed one of the game's most successful new-ball partnerships with fellow West Indies great Curtly Ambrose and later captained the national side in 22 Test matches.

Following retirement, Walsh built an extensive coaching career. He served as a fast-bowling consultant with Punjab Kings in the IPL before becoming Bangladesh's bowling coach between 2016 and 2019. During that stint, he also briefly took charge as interim head coach. More recently, he coached the West Indies women's team through major ICC tournaments before concluding his tenure in 2023.

Zimbabwe will now hope Walsh's expertise helps strengthen its pace attack as the team prepares for future international assignments.