Australia suffer another blow, Josh Hazlewood ruled out of T20 World Cup 2026
After Pat Cummins, Australia have been dealt with another huge blow as Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the T20 World Cup 2026 as he is "running out of time" to recover from a hamstring injury.
Australia have been hit with another huge blow ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026 as star pacer Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the tournament after "running out of time" to recover from a hamstring injury.
Cricket Australia (CA), however, will not be naming a replacement for the speedster just yet and will play the wait-and-see game of how things unfold in the future. CA was hopeful of Hazlewood joining the squad during the middle and the later stages of the tournament; however, he is running out of time, with Australia set to play their opening game on February 11 against Ireland.
"We were hopeful Josh would be back to match fitness by the Super 8 stage, but the latest indications he is still some time away, and accelerating his program will carry too much risk," selector Tony Dodemaide said.
"We will not be naming a replacement player immediately. We feel we are well covered for the initial games, so we will make any later decisions based on priority need at the time," he added.
Nathan Ellis and Tim David are expected to be available for the group stage, while Adam Zampa is set to return for the opening match in Colombo next week.
Australia’s practice match against the Netherlands was abandoned on Monday night, but the squad still has a six-day preparation window ahead of their first pool fixture against Ireland on February 11. Australia will play all four of their preliminary matches in Colombo and Pallekele.
Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the 2025–26 Ashes series due to a lingering Achilles injury sustained during his rehabilitation from an earlier hamstring strain. Previously, captain Pat Cummins was also ruled out of the entire tournament with a persistent back issue and was replaced in the 15-man squad by Ben Dwarshuis.
Adding to Australia’s bowling concerns, Mitchell Starc’s retirement from T20 internationals has already deprived the side of a proven all-conditions strike bowler.