Australia Knocked Out of T20 World Cup 2026 As Zimbabwe Book Super 8th Spot After Rain Washes Out Ireland Clash
Rain had the final say at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Tuesday, February 17, as the high-stakes Group B encounter between Ireland and Zimbabwe was abandoned without a ball bowled. Both sides shared a point each from the washout and that solitary point proved enough for Zimbabwe to seal their berth in the Super Eight stage of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026.
Zimbabwe now join India, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, West Indies, England, and South Africa in the next round. The bigger story, however, was the team left behind: Australia were officially eliminated from the tournament a first in T20 World Cup history that the five-time ODI world champions have failed to advance past the group stage.
Australia’s exit had been set in motion 24 hours earlier in Kandy, where Sri Lanka dismantled them on Monday, February 16. Tasked with defending 181, Australia watched Sri Lanka chase down the target with remarkable ease. Pacer Dushan Hemantha had earlier set the tone with three wickets for 37 runs across his four overs, restricting Australia to what ultimately proved an insufficient total. The chase was then headlined by a stunning Pathum Nissanka century an unbeaten 100 off just 52 balls as Sri Lanka sprinted home by eight wickets to claim victory and confirm their own Super Eight qualification.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, a subdued Australia captain Mitchell Marsh did not shy away from the result, pointing squarely to his side’s inability to execute their game plan as the innings wore on.
“I think it was probably just execution tonight. That full-strength batting lineup has some of the best players of spin in Australia. It was more about execution. Sri Lanka pulled it back beautifully. We were probably a few short after the start. We had great belief going into the second innings, but we were outplayed,” Marsh said.
The skipper acknowledged that Australia had built a decent platform with the bat but could not convert it into a match-winning score as the pitch began to grip and slow.
“I guess we’ll never know what would have happened if we made 220. We had a good platform but weren’t able to execute towards the back end. It’s disappointing. We’re certainly not here to blame anyone, but we’re a disappointed group. We knew we were going to face spin towards the back end, the pitch slowed up a little bit, but again, it was about execution,” Marsh added.
Australia’s group-stage exit marks a historic low for a side that has long been among the heavyweights of the shortest format, leaving the cricketing world to reckon with an unfamiliar T20 World Cup landscape — one without the Australians in it.