Former New Zealand T20I batter switches to Scotland, named in ODI squad

After earning his first T20I call-up for New Zealand in December 2016, Bruce made his debut a month later against Bangladesh. In just his second T20I appearance, he scored an unbeaten 59 batting at No.5 to secure victory for New Zealand. However, he managed only one more fifty in his next 15 innings. A lack of consistency, compounded by twin ducks during New Zealand's 5-0 series defeat to India at home in 2020, limited his international career to just 17 T20Is.

The 34-year-old former New Zealand batter will now play for Scotland, qualifying through his Edinburgh-born father's heritage. Bruce had previously represented the Scotland Development side in 2016 before playing for New Zealand. We’re excited to welcome Tom Bruce into the squad for the first time," a statement from Cricket Scotland quoted head of performance Steve Snell.

"He has had a very successful career in New Zealand cricket, but he is proud of his Scottish heritage and we’ve been in conversations with him for some time about committing to playing for Scotland. He’s excited to get involved and sees a huge level of opportunity for both him and the team moving forward."

Also returning is seamer Josh Davey, who last played for Scotland in the 2022 T20 World Cup, along with spinner Chris Greaves, who finished as the joint third-highest wicket-taker in the ICC T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier.Also returning is seamer Josh Davey, who last played for Scotland in the 2022 T20 World Cup, along with spinner Chris Greaves, who finished as the joint third-highest wicket-taker in the ICC T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier.Scotland play Canada and Namibia across four matches between August 29 and September 6, at the Maple Leaf Cricket Club in King City near Toronto.What have Tom Bruce’s recent gigs been? Bruce was an integral part of Central Districts' squad across all formats during the 2024-25 New Zealand domestic season. As captain, he led CD to a title win in the Super Smash – New Zealand's premier T20 competition – finishing as the tournament's second-highest run-scorer with 339 runs at 56.50 (strike rate 157.67).

He also featured among the top three run-getters in the Ford Trophy (List A competition), amassing 431 runs at 43.40 (strike rate 108.02) to guide his team to the knockout stages.In the Plunket Shield (first-class cricket), Bruce's standout performance was a mammoth 345 against Auckland – the third-highest first-class score in New Zealand.

Bruce's most recent appearance came for CD in the Global Super League in July.