ICC event winner in for Samoa's T20 World Cup push

By Daniel Beswick

New Zealand legend and ICC World Test Championship winner Ross Taylor is set represent Samoa at the upcoming Asia-East Asia-Pacific T20 World Cup 2026 Qualifier in Oman in a bid for the nation’s maiden men’s global event qualification.

Taylor was included in the squad named on Friday morning, the final step in Samoa's path to ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026. The Asia-East Asia-Pacific T20 World Cup 2026 Qualifier begins on October 8.

"This is more than just a return to the game I love - it's the huge honour to represent my heritage, culture, villages and family," Taylor said on Instagram.

"I'm excited for the opportunity to give back to the game, join the squad, and share my experience on and off the field."

Taylor is one of several inclusions for Samoa on the path to T20 World Cup next year in India and Sri Lanka, with the likes of Sean Solia also set to return to the Samoan fold, among others to impress in a recent quadrangular-series in Singapore.

Darius Visser, who famously hit 39 runs off an over in Sub-Regional qualifying, is also included.

Taylor holds a Samoan passport attained through his mother’s heritage, and becomes eligible for his second national team having seen out the three-year stand out period after his last match for New Zealand back in April 2022.

The 41-year-old cites Kilikiti (a Pacific island form of the game) as a major influence in his sporting upbringing, and has historically called on New Zealand Cricket to place more resources into the Polynesian community.

For the Black Caps, Taylor amassed over 18,000 runs, including 1909 at a strike rate of 122.37 in his T20I career. The right hander also featured across seven IPL and five CPL seasons on the T20 franchise circuit, making close to 5,000 runs around the world.

Taylor joins the Samoans on their final step to Men’s T20 World Cup qualification, with Caleb Jasmat’s side shocking the field in Sub-Regional qualifying, beating off the likes of Vanuatu, Cook Islands and Fiji to claim their spot at the new hybrid Asia/East Asia-Pacific Qualifier.

A nine-team team affair, Samoa joins Papua New Guinea and Japan as East Asia-Pacific representatives at the tournament, gunning for three T20 World Cup spots in a competition also featuring Oman, Nepal, Kuwait, Malaysia, Qatar and UAE.

Samoa do have a global appearance to their name, with the U19 Women competing at the U19 T20 World Cup earlier this year in Malaysia.

Samoa T20 Squad:

Caleb Jasmat (c), Ross Taylor, Darius Visser, Sean Solia, Daniel Burgess, Douglas Finau, Sam French, Kurtis Hynam-Nyberg, Ben Mailata, Noah Mead, Solomon Nash, Samson Sola, Fereti Sululoto, Saumani Tiai, Ili Tugaga.