Australia's campaign in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 was shortened after a loss against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka in the group stage. After the defeat, they were knocked out of the tournament without reaching the Super 8. The last time Australia were knocked out of the tournament was back in 2009, so this will surely be a forgettable edition for them. 

Meanwhile, all the other teams seemed ecstatic about Australia's defeat since they are a tough team to beat, especially in the knockout matches. England's star batter Jacob Bethell gave a candid reaction to Australia's elimination. He was happy that they would not meet the Aussies in the knockout matches since they are a dangerous team. 

"It was good to see. They just didn't seem like they got firing in the tournament. You know and those group stages if you don't hit the ground, you're in danger of that happening. So it was a shame for them," said Bethell during an interview. 

Watch the video here:

JACOB BETHELL ABOUT AUSTRALIA OUT OF THE WC:

"It’s good to see". 😂🔥 [BBC] pic.twitter.com/8p6YfKNAgh

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) February 21, 2026

Australia started out late, and with injuries cripling their squad, it was anticipated that their tournament might turn out to be a disaster. However, they would be knocked out of the group stage was something that nobody would have thought of earlier. They started their campaign with a victory over Ireland but went on to lose against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka. Despite a not-so-good tournament, they did end up beating Oman in the last match, which is a huge positive for them. 

Why did Australia get knocked out before Super 8 stage?

Australia are known as one of the most dangerous sides in the world, especially in T20Is. Led by Mitchell Marsh, the team had some of the best T20I players. However, ahead of the tournament, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood were ruled out due to injuries. Before the start of their campaign, skipper Marsh was also ruled out for a few games. 

Hence, Australia entered the field with a rather inexperienced side who have not played enough T20I matches in the past. The team was led by Travis Head, who did well with the bat, but there were a few mistakes in the captaincy that might have taken down the team. 

"We said at the start of this World Cup that we were concerned about Australia. All of a sudden the aura of that Australian team is no longer there when other teams play it … unfortunately, not surprising. You wonder what's happening … it's all over the place," said Glenn McGrath.

The failure of Cooper Connolly and Cameron Green, and dropping Matt Renshaw, who was the highest run-scorer for Australia before the Sri Lanka game, didn't work in favor of the team. These are the few reasons why Australia were defeated and had to depart from the tournament.