The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Sub Regional East Asia-Pacific Qualifier A is currently underway in Samoa, featuring four teams: Samoa, Fiji, Cook Islands, and Vanuatu. This tournament, running from August 17 to 24, 2024, is a critical step in the qualification process for the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka.
Samoa's Darius Visser set a new record for the most runs scored in a single over in men's T20I cricket. During the match between Samoa and Vanuatu at Garden Oval No.2 in Apia, Samoa, Visser managed to score an astonishing 39 runs from the 15th over of the match.
Visser's explosive over featured six sixes, three of which were aided by no balls bowled by Vanuatu seamer Nalin Nipiko. The 39-run over eclipsed the previous record of 36 runs in a T20I over, famously achieved by India's Yuvraj Singh during the 2007 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. This historic achievement also surpassed similar feats by other cricketers like Kieron Pollard, Nicholas Pooran, Dipendra Singh Airee, and the duo of Rohit Sharma and Rinku Singh.
Visser's onslaught began with sixes off the first three deliveries, followed by another six off the fourth legal delivery. Despite a dot ball on the fifth, Visser kept his momentum, smashing a six off the final no ball and capping the over with another massive hit. This exceptional performance also saw Visser becoming the first Samoan player to score a century in international cricket, finishing his innings with 132 runs from just 62 balls, including 14 sixes.
Visser's heroics helped Samoa secure their second victory in the tournament, keeping their hopes alive for qualifying for the 2026 T20 World Cup.
The tournament operates in a double round-robin format, where each team plays the others twice, resulting in a total of 12 matches. The team that tops the points table at the end of these matches will advance to the regional final, joining Papua New Guinea and the winner of the Sub-Regional Qualifier B, which will take place in South Korea next month.
Vanuatu entered the competition as defending champions, with star players like Joshua Rasu and Nalin Nipiko leading their campaign. However, the tournament has already seen significant upsets and outstanding performances. Notably, Samoa's Darius Visser made headlines by breaking the record for the most runs scored in a single over in T20I history, smashing 39 runs against Vanuatu.
The tournament is being played at the Faleata Oval No.2 in Apia, Samoa, and has attracted attention due to the competitive nature of the games and the high stakes involved. The top team from this qualifier will advance to the Asia-East Asia-Pacific hybrid Qualifier, the final hurdle before the 2026 T20 World Cup.
For those interested in following the action, the matches are being streamed live on ICC.tv in select regions
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