A tour to England in 1983 saw New Zealand register their first ever Test win on English soil, at Headingley. The match was remarkable for Hadlee's match return of 0 for 89, a very unusual occurrence in a New Zealand victory during his career. England eventually won the 4 Test series 3–1; however, Hadlee topped both batting and bowling averages for New Zealand in the series, and took his 200th Test wicket in the final Test at Nottingham. In the return Test series in New Zealand in 1984, New Zealand completed a remarkable three-day innings victory (including one day lost to rain) over England at Christchurch, in which England were dismissed for less than 100 in both of their innings. The match was also notable for Hadlee's superb all-round performance – he took 8 wickets in the match, and scored a rapid-fire 99 in New Zealand's only innings. These efforts led him to achieve the number 1 ranking in ICC Test Bowling Rankings for the year 1984 (he retained it for the next 4 years, till 1988). alt=|thumb|Ian Botham and Richard Hadlee, Basin Reserve, February 1978 1985/86 was the beginning of a period in which Hadlee developed from a very good fast bowler to a truly great one. In New Zealand's tour to Australia, an outstanding all-round performance helped destroy the home team in the first Test at Brisbane, beginning with a personal Test best 9 for 52 in Australia's first innings. A batting effort of 54 (to complement a fine 188 by Martin Crowe) combined with 6 more wickets in Australia's second innings, helped New Zealand to a crushing innings victory. Hadlee followed this up with 7 wickets in a loss in the second Test, and 11 wickets in a New Zealand victory in the third Test, giving his country their first series win on Australian soil and a personal haul of 33 wickets in 3 Tests. In the first Test of the return series in New Zealand, Hadlee took his 300th Test wicket by trapping Australian captain Allan Border LBW. The series was eventually won 2-1 by New Zealand by way of a victory in the third Test at Eden Park.
A tour to England in 1983 saw New Zealand register their first ever Test win on English soil at Headingley. The match was remarkable for Hadlee's match return of 0 for 89, a very unusual occurrence in a New Zealand victory during his career. England eventually won the 4 Test series 3–1; however, Hadlee topped both batting and bowling averages for New Zealand in the series, and took his 200th Test wicket in the final Test at Nottingham. In the return Test series in New Zealand in 1984, New Zealand completed a remarkable three-day innings victory (including one day lost to rain) over England at Christchurch, in which England were dismissed for less than 100 in both of their innings. The match was also notable for Hadlee's superb all-round performance – he took 8 wickets in the match, and scored a rapid-fire 99 in New Zealand's only innings. These efforts led him to achieve the number 1 ranking in ICC Test Bowling Rankings for the year 1984 (he retained it for the next 4 years, till 1988). alt=|thumb|Ian Botham and Richard Hadlee, Basin Reserve, February 1978 1985/86 was the beginning of a period in which Hadlee developed from a very good fast bowler to a truly great one. In New Zealand's tour to Australia, an outstanding all-round performance helped destroy the home team in the first Test at Brisbane, beginning with a personal Test best 9 for 52 in Australia's first innings. A batting effort of 54 (to complement a fine 188 by Martin Crowe) combined with 6 more wickets in Australia's second innings, helped New Zealand to a crushing innings victory. Hadlee followed this up with 7 wickets in a loss in the second Test, and 11 wickets in a New Zealand victory in the third Test, giving his country their first series win on Australian soil and a personal haul of 33 wickets in 3 Tests. In the first Test of the return series in New Zealand, Hadlee took his 300th Test wicket by trapping Australian captain Allan Border LBW. The series was eventually won 2-1 by New Zealand by way of a victory in the third Test at Eden Park.