Follow UsItaly made history as they qualified for the T20 World Cup for the first time in their cricketing lineage. They became the 15th team to qualify for the showpiece event and only the fifth team from Europe to do so, after England, Ireland, the Netherlands and Scotland.
Joe Burns, the Australian Test batter who switched sides to play for the country of birth of his grandparents- Italy - is their captain and mainstay. However, there are others that are way too exciting not to be noticed when they take the field in India and Sri Lanka during the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Here are the top three players apart from Joe Burns to look out for:
If it was the Cooper Brothers of the Netherlands, who were born, raised and trained in Australia, it is the Manenti brothers doing the same for Italy.
Benjamin Manenti, the older of the two brothers, debuted for Italy in 2023 and has so far appeared in 8 T20Is, including the four matches in the European Qualifiers for the T20 World Cup 2026. He has taken three wickets and scored 83 runs.
Otherwise, in 41 T20s, he has 33 wickets, having represented the Sydney Sixers and Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League (BBL) in 33 matches since 2018/19.
Harry, though, is in the mould of T20 cricket completely. The 24-year-old has 34 wickets in 18 T20Is and 320 runs as well, being a proper all-rounder in every sense. He has also appeared for the Adelaide Strikers in BBL 2024-25.
For those who follow India A, Emilio Gay should be a familiar name, as he was part of the England Lions against the India A side in the two-match unofficial Test series.
Gay, however, quickly switched sides right ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026 Europe Qualifiers. He played all three matches and surprised all by striking at a rate of 213 in those internationals, while his T20 strike rate before that was in the 130s. He is considered more of a red-ball batter as he has amassed 3776 runs for Northamptonshire in County cricket.
Thomas Draca, another Australian-born Italian cricketer, is someone who has travelled around the world. Apart from making his Italy debut in 2024 against Luxembourg, Draca has played for Brampton Wolves in Global T20 Canada. He finished as the fifth-highest wicket-taker in Global T20 Canada 2024 with 11 wickets in six games at an average of 10.63 and an economy rate of 6.68.
Draca was also part of the MI Emirates side in the International League T20 (ILT20) and was part of the 1500-odd registered players for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 auction.