Japan have named Kazuma Kato-Stafford as captain for the 2026 ICC Under-19 Men’s World Cup, set to be held in Namibia and Zimbabwe in January–February. Former captain Nikhil Pol and allrounder Timothy Moore, who missed the recent ACC Premier Cup in Ajman, return to strengthen the 15-member squad.
Japan showed flashes of dominance at the Premier Cup, including a 366-run win over Maldives after scoring 422 for 7, and a 183-run victory against Qatar, but narrowly missed out on the semi-finals after losing to Oman. Big hitters Nihar Parmar, who smashed 156 off 132 balls against Maldives, and Kaisei Kobayashi-Doggett, who hammered 106 off 73 against Qatar, have also been retained.
For the U19 World Cup, Japan have been placed in a challenging Group A alongside Australia, Ireland, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and West Indies. The squad departs for southern Africa on January 5, with two warm-up matches scheduled before the tournament begins.
Japan’s coaching staff features strong senior-team influence, with national captain Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming serving as assistant coach and Reo Sakurano-Thomas taking charge as head coach.
Japan’s World Cup match schedule:
- Jan 10 – vs Tanzania (Warm-up)
- Jan 13 – vs West Indies (Warm-up)
- Jan 17 – vs Sri Lanka
- Jan 20 – vs Australia
- Jan 22 – vs Ireland
Japan squad for men’s Under-19 World Cup:
Kazuma Kato-Stafford (C), Charles Hara-Hinze, Gabriel Hara-Hinze, Montgomery Hara-Hinze, Kaisei Kobayashi-Doggett, Timothy Moore, Skyler Nakayama-Cook, Ryuki Ozeki, Nihar Parmar, Nikhil Pol, Chihaya Sekine, Hugo Tani-Kelly, Sandev Aaryan Waduge, Kai Wall, Taylor Waugh
