Nine nations, three tickets: High-stakes T20 World Cup showdown begins in Oman

WEB DESK: The race for the final three spots at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 begins in Al-Amarat, Oman, where nine teams from Asia and the East Asia-Pacific regions face off in a rare cross-regional qualifier from October 8–17.

This unique event, the only combined qualifier in the T20 World Cup cycle, features teams separated by over 16,000 kilometres, from Samoa in the Pacific to Kuwait in the Gulf. Nepal, Oman and Papua New Guinea enter as seasoned contenders after featuring in the 2024 World Cup, while UAE, Qatar, Malaysia, Kuwait, Japan and Samoa earned their spots through sub-regional qualifiers.

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Nepal arrive as one of the form teams, having stunned the West Indies in a T20I series in the UAE. Skipper Rohit Paudel’s side retains much of its 2024 core, with all-rounder Kushal Bhurtel emerging as a key weapon. Hosts Oman boast a reshaped yet confident squad, strengthened by their ODI success in League 2, while PNG will rely heavily on captain Assad Vala’s batting and young spinner John Kariko.

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Samoa, led by Caleb Jasmat and reinforced by former New Zealand star Ross Taylor, add an emotional twist to the mix, alongside Japan’s disciplined, unbeaten qualifiers. The top three teams from the Super Six stage will secure their World Cup spots. All matches will stream live and free on ICC.tv (FanCode in parts of Asia).

Asia/East Asia-Pacific T20 World Cup Qualifier (October 8–17)

• Group A: United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Malaysia
• Group B: Nepal, Kuwait, Japan
• Group C: Oman, Papua New Guinea, Samoa