Ex-New Zealand batter Ross Taylor comes out of retirement to represent THIS team in T20 World Cup 2026 qualifiers
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Ex-New Zealand batter Ross Taylor comes out of retirement to represent THIS team in T20 World Cup 2026 qualifiers")
Ex-NZ batter Taylor comes out of retirement for T20 World Cup 2026 qualifiers Photograph: (AFP)
Ross Taylor had last played for New Zealand in 2022 before retiring. He now has come out of the retirement to represent his mother's country Samoa in upcoming T20 World Cup 2026 qualifiers in the Asia-East Asia-Pacific region next month.
Former New Zealand batter Ross Taylor has come out of the retirement to represent Samoa in the Asia-East Asia-Pacific T20 World Cup 2026 qualifiers. The 41-year-old, considered on the of greatest New Zealand batters, last played in international cricket in 2022. He holds Samoan passport through his mother had to serve a cooling off period of three years from his last international match to be eligible to play for them in international cricket. The 2026 T20 World Cup qualifiers start in October next month and will be held in Oman.
Why did Taylor come out of retirement?
Taylor had played 112 Tests, 236 ODIs and 102 T20Is for New Zealand since his debut in 2006 and retirement in April 2022. He scored 7683, 8607 and 1909 runs in the three formats, respectively and was one of the best Kiwi batters to ever play the game. He now has been named in Samoa's 15-man squad for the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup qualifiers for Asia-East Asia-Pacific region, something which he described on his Instagram account as "huge honour to represent my heritage, culture, villages, and family."
Which teams are in Asia-EAP T20 World Cup 2026 qualifiers
Samoa reached the 2026 T20 World Cup qualifiers stage after overcoming Vanuatu, Cook Islands and Fiji. They join Papua New Guinea and Japan as the other East Asia-Pacific contenders. The other teams in their region which will also be competing are Oman, Nepal, Kuwait, Malaysia, Qatar and UAE. Taylor's performance will be crucial if Samoa were to qualify for the main event. The batter, however, last played in the format in November 2020.
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Samoa T20I squad for T20 World Cup 2026 qualifiers
Caleb Jasmat (capt), 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
