Sean Solia

Sean Solia is one of the hottest all-round prospects in New Zealand domestic cricket.

A genuine all-rounder for the Auckland Aces - an explosive middle-order batter who either opens the bowling or fills the first change role across all formats.

Of Samoan heritage, Solia was a standout for the country of his father’s birth at the 2018/19 ICC World T20 East Asia-Pacific qualifiers, topping the tournament's wicket charts.

Heading into the tournament, Solia had already made his mark in New Zealand domestic cricket, following his headline-grabbing List A debut for the Aces, smashing a sensational 152 from 127 balls against Northern Districts. He would go on to rack up 466 runs at 77.66 during his maiden Ford Trophy campaign (2016/17).

The following summer, he bagged 11 wickets at 19.81 in the Ford Trophy, alongside 428 runs at 32.92 (5 fifties) for the Aces in the Plunket Shield (first-class).

Roll on the 2018/19 season and Solia would continue to dominate the Ford Trophy, hitting his second List A ton (133*) en-route to 383 runs at 38.30 and 10 wickets at 31.80. He would show his consistency in the longer format too, with a season tally of 415 runs at 31.92 and 16 wickets at 28.81.

Yet another solid 2019/20 season followed, before a third List A ton in 2020/21 (121) amongst his Ford Trophy tally of 298 runs at 49.66.

The summer of (2021/22), he continued to excel, posting career-best Plunket Shield figures with 5-8 to help roll Otago for 54.

A few months later, he would terrorize the Volts again, this time with the bat in the Super Smash (T20), guiding the Aces chase of 130 finishing 67 not out from 54 balls. It was a herculean innings given Solia entered the fray at 5-13 which quickly became 26-6. His innings, which included 4 fours, and 3 sixes, helped the Aces over the line with 2 balls to spare.

It’s fair to say, Solia is a massive cog in the Auckland wheel, and he’s already generated national interest with inclusion in the New Zealand XI and ‘A’ sides in recent years.

Solia clearly harbours national ambitions and given his success across all formats to date, with both bat and ball, he stands every chance in future. For now, though, his focus is on performing at domestic level and following the summer he’s looking to return to England in 2026.

Unsurprisingly he was a stand-out for Hornsey in the Middlesex League, particularly during his 9-game stint in 2016 scoring 410 runs at 81 alongside 11 wickets at 12.55. During the same summer he was also a run-machine for the MCC Young Cricketers in both 2nd XI Championship (373 runs at 62.16), and Trophy (215 runs at 53.75) cricket. He has also recently enjoyed successful stints at Datchet CC and Harefield CC in the Home Counties League.

Solia is an exceptional all-round talent. He is now set to showcase his talents in the UK after signing with Sleaford CC for their Lincolnshire Premier League campaign.