Luteru Ross Poutoa Lote Taylor (born 8 March 1984) is a Samoan international cricketer and a former New Zealand international cricketer who served as captain of the New Zealand national team. A right-handed middle-order batter who batted predominantly at number four, Taylor was, at the time of his retirement from international cricket at the end of 2021, the leading run-scorer for New Zealand in both Test and One Day International (ODI) cricket.
| Full name | Luteru Ross Poutoa Lote Taylor |
|---|---|
| Born | 8 March 1984 |
| Batting style | Right-handed, primarily at number four |
| National sides | New Zealand; Samoa (from 2025) |
| Role | Batter; former captain of New Zealand |
| T20I debut for Samoa | 8 October 2025 |
| Final international match for New Zealand | 4 April 2022 (ODI v Netherlands) |
Taylor's mother is Samoan, a heritage that later enabled his return to international cricket with Samoa. He spent the bulk of his career representing New Zealand across all three international formats.
Taylor was a long-serving member of the New Zealand side and captained the team during his career. He was part of the New Zealand squads that finished as runners-up in two Cricket World Cup finals, in 2015 and 2019.
Taylor was a key member of the New Zealand team that won the inaugural ICC World Test Championship in the 2019–2021 cycle. In the final, he scored the winning boundary that sealed the title for New Zealand.
In December 2021, Taylor announced that he would retire from international cricket after the ODI series against Australia and the Netherlands in early 2022. On 4 April 2022, he played his 450th and final international match for New Zealand, an ODI against the Netherlands.
In 2025, Taylor announced that he was coming out of retirement to represent the Samoa national cricket team in its attempt to qualify for the 2026 T20 World Cup. He made his Twenty20 International debut for Samoa on 8 October 2025.
Taylor is regarded as one of the most prolific batters in New Zealand's cricket history, holding the records for most Test and ODI runs for the country at the time of his retirement and being the most-capped New Zealand international across formats. His distinction of becoming the first cricketer to appear in 100 matches in each of the three international formats is a notable milestone in the modern game. His later decision to represent Samoa added a further dimension to his career, linking his playing days to his Pacific heritage.