Samoa booked a place in next year's East Asia Pacific/Asia joint qualifier with an emotional win in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup East Asia Pacific Regional Qualifier A on Saturday.
On the same day, Fiji's narrow nine-point victory over the Cook Islands paved the way for Samoa to take the lead, and they sealed it in dramatic fashion with a tense eight-point victory over Vanuatu in front of a jubilant home crowd at the Garden Ovals in Apia.
After a dramatic week of competition, the results are uncertain heading into the final round of matches, with the Cook Islands topping the standings.
The Cook Islands chose to bat first in the day's early game and, thanks to efforts from captain Peni Voravola (45), Kau Kola (26) and Peniseni Kotoisuva (28 not out), restricted Fiji to 135 for 9 in the 20 overs.
Corey Dixon was the best performer among Cook Islands' bowlers with 21 runs and three losses in his four overs.
Cook Islands had impressed with their No. 2 batsman in all of their previous matches this week, but this time the top order was easily beaten at the hands of Joeli Moala, with the seamer taking four of the top five batsmen for three wickets and one run out.
Aue Parima (57) looked determined to thwart a Fiji onslaught but collapsed in the 17th over in the first thrilling climax of the day.
Needing 10 runs off the final over to win the qualifiers, the brilliant Moala came back to ruin Cook Islands' effort, bowling the first ball to guide Fiji to victory by nine runs and paving the way for Samoa to beat Vanuatu to take the lead at the top of the table.
Knowing that a win would be enough, Samoa won the coin toss in the deciding final match of the day and elected to bat first.
Samoa openers Sean Cotter (51) and Darren Roche (21) scored at the top of the batting order but their innings was limited by some economical pitching from the Vanuatu team.
Despite a solid performance from the fielding line-up, a late onslaught from the lower-order saw Samoa post 145 for eight in the 20 overs.
Vanuatu maintained a steady run-rate for much of the early stages but lost wickets at regular intervals. Clement Tommy and Bettan Vilariliu made the most impact in the batting for Samoa, with 31 and 39 respectively, but it was a combination of skilled fielding and the introduction of Saumani Tiai that turned the tide of the game.
Tiai took two wickets in his first three overs, including a crucial catch from Viraliliu, before bowling Samoa's final over to help them defend their 13-run victory. Three singles followed by two deep catches saw Samoa hang in there until the end to secure a memorable win and a place in the next round.
Reacting to the dramatic qualification, Samoa captain Caleb Jasmat said: “It still doesn't feel real to be honest. It's a great honour to have the opportunity to represent Samoa and my family. I'm really proud of my players and how they performed throughout the tournament.”
“This is a huge moment in Samoa cricket history and we hope it will inspire the next generation of South Pacific cricketers. It's a credit to them that the team has the ability to continue to fight and find a way to win.”
Tournament Director Emily O'Brien added: “We were able to cap off a fantastic week with an emotional win for the home team and really bring a fantastic celebration of cricket in Samoa to a close.”
It was fantastic to see such fierce competition and outstanding performances from all the teams and it was no surprise that it all came down to the final day of play. This victory is a clear testament to the continuing growth and strength of cricket in the Pacific.
“Congratulations to Samoa Cricket for being fantastic hosts and being crowned champions of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup EAP Sub-Region Qualifier 'A'.”
The climax of the tournament in Samoa comes during a busy period in the Men's T20 World Cup 2026 qualification calendar, with European Sub-Region Qualifier C in Guernsey finishing this week and Asian Sub-Region Qualifier A beginning in Malaysia on Friday 30 August.
Samoa will join PNG in the EAP/Asia Qualifier, with the region's final spot decided at the Sub-Region Qualifier B event in Korea next month.
The ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 will feature 20 teams, of which 12 will have automatic berths and eight will earn qualification through regional pathway events.
The automatic qualifiers will be the teams who qualified for the recently concluded 2024 Super Eights, namely Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, South Africa, West Indies and the United States.
Sri Lanka will also qualify automatically as the hosts, with Ireland, New Zealand and Pakistan the next highest-ranked teams in the ICC Men's T20I rankings table as of June 30.
Sub-regional qualifiers will be held in other ICC regions throughout 2024, with the respective regional finals also to be held in 2025 to determine the final line-ups of teams that will compete in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup to be held in India and Sri Lanka in 2026.
