After serving the Australian team, Joe Burns has found a new home in the form of the Italy cricket team.
Italy’s cricket team is finally turning a corner! After years of hard work, they’ve qualified for the next stage of the 2026 T20 World Cup. To top it off, they’ve appointed former Australian Test opener Joe Burns as captain. With this new leadership, the team is expected to grow and thrive. As the former Italy captain said, their main goal is to qualify for the ICC 2026 T20 World Cup.
“This is just the start of the journey for us. We’ve got huge aspirations as a team, and qualifying for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is our ultimate goal. We need to work hard and keep improving, but we have the quality within the group to do so. We’re already looking forward to the Europe Qualifier next year,” Gareth Berg had said in June.
Hailing from Brisbane, Burns made his Test debut for Australia in 2014 and featured in the side until 2020. During this period, he played 23 games, scoring 1,442 runs in 40 innings. The right-handed batter also smashed 4 centuries and 7 half-centuries in Test cricket, with an average of 36.97.
Apart from representing Australia in the longest format of the game, Burns also donned the ODI cap, having played only six matches. Additionally, he carries extensive experience in domestic cricket in Australia and has featured in both the T20 Blast and the Big Bash League.
In May 2023, Burns became eligible to play for Italy through his mother’s heritage and made his debut for them in June. Earlier this year, the 35-year-old decided to retire from Australian cricket and committed fully to his new home, Italy.
Recently, he was appointed as the new captain of Italy’s T20I side. Expressing his excitement, Burns said:
“I am honoured to take on this role and represent Italy on the international stage,” Burns stated. “For me, it is a return to my family’s roots. Italian cricket has enormous potential, and I am excited to contribute to its growth. Together with my teammates, we are working to achieve ambitious goals and make our fans proud.”
Fabio Marabini, president of the Italian Cricket Federation, backed Burns to succeed in the leadership role.
“Since day one, Joe has shown great generosity and professionalism, putting his experience and competitive spirit at the disposal of the team,” he said. “His choice as captain reflects our ambition to take Italian cricket to new levels. We are also counting on his leadership to play a pivotal role in the next qualifying stages for the 2026 T20 World Cup.”
So far, Burns has played five T20Is, racking up 211 runs at an impressive average of 70.33 and a strike rate of 144.52.
In his most recent T20I, the former Australian batter scored an unbeaten 108 off 55 balls to secure a victory against Romania in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Sub-Regional Europe Qualifier Group A.
Joe Burns is also set to join the Dubai Capitals in the UAE’s ILT20, adding to his T20 credentials, which already include stints in the Big Bash League and England’s Vitality Blast.
