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Australia’s troubles are not stopping before the T20 World Cup, now this legendary bowler of Cummins is out!

Samira Vishwas | February 3, 2026 4:24 AM CST

T20 World Cup 2026: The T20 World Cup is going to start from February 7, but even before the match, the Australian team has suffered a big setback. Their main fast bowler Josh Hazlewood will not be able to play in the initial matches. He will remain in Sydney and continue treatment to recover from his injury.

How did Hazlewood get injured?

Josh Hazlewood has been struggling with injuries for some time. First he suffered a hamstring strain, due to which he was out of all the matches of the Ashes series. He also injured his heel during rehabilitation. Cricket Australia’s medical team decided that he should recover in a better environment at home rather than taking him to Sri Lanka. This will strengthen the chances of his early return.

Selector Tony Dodemide said that it would be more practical and beneficial for Josh to rehabilitate by living in a familiar place. He did not give any specific time frame as to when Hazlewood would join the team, but the team will keep an eye on his fitness.

Shaun Abbott joins as reserve

To maintain the depth of fast bowling in Hazlewood’s absence, Australia has added experienced bowler Shaun Abbott to the team as a traveling reserve player. Abbott was also in Pakistan tour and he can play immediately if needed. Nathan Ellis is also recovering from injury, so it is important to have Abbott’s backup.

Dodemide said that with the return of Nathan Ellis, the team decided to keep Shaun as fast bowling cover. This will keep the team strong in any emergency situation.

Glenn Maxwell, Nathan Ellis and Tim David did not play in the Pakistan T20 series, but they will join the team after reaching Colombo. Australia will start its campaign against Ireland on 11 February. Before this they will play a warm-up match with Netherlands.

Australia team for T20 World Cup

Mitchell Marsh (captain), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Ben Dwarshius, Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matt Kuhneman, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Renshaw, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa, Shaun Abbott (reserve players).