Colombo [Sri Lanka], February 13 : Zimbabwe pulled off the biggest upset of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 when they defeated the mighty Australia by 23 runs in match 19 held at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Friday.
This is the second time that the African nation has beaten Australia in a T20 World Cup match. The first was when Australia lost their group stage match against Zimbabwe in the 2007 edition.
Australia won the toss and elected to field, but little went their way after that. In an assured batting performance, Zimbabwe posted 169/2 in 20 overs, their highest score against Australia in T20Is. Zimbabwe's previous best against Australia was 151/9 in Harare in July 2018.
They carried on the momentum in the field, reducing Australia to 29/4 inside the first five overs.
Glenn Maxwell (31) and Matt Renshaw (65) helped Australia steady the ship. While Maxwell's repeated attempts to break free reaped little reward, Renshaw steadily helped Australia pick up the pace with a mature 64 off 44.
The 77-run stand for the fifth wicket came to an end after Maxwell dragged on a fullish delivery by Ryan Burl onto the stumps. His wicket led to the lower-order collapse, as Australia slipped from 106/5 to 146 all out.
Zimbabwe were rewarded for their disciplined bowling. Zimbabwe pacers Blessing Muzarabani and Brad Evans razed the Aussie top order, then returned to deliver the knockout blow. While Muzarabani finished with 4/17, Evans claimed three wickets.
Their commitment in the field was epitomised by Tony Munyonga's diving catch to send back Ben Dwarshuis.
The Zimbabwe top order was in great nick and gave the team just the positive start they needed, motoring to 47/0 in powerplay. While Tadiwanashe Marumani (35) and Brian Bennett led the charge with a 61-run opening partnership, Bennett combined with Ryan Burl (35) to score 70 runs for the second wicket.
Playing more of an anchor role, Bennett scored an unbeaten 64 off 56 balls. Captain Sikandar Raza chipped in with a crucial 25 off 13 balls, and hit the only six of the match, which came off the final ball of the innings.
With the Zimbabwe batters taking on the challenge, Australia tried out seven bowlers in the first 10 overs. Marcus Stoinis provided Australia with the breakthrough, getting a nick off Marumani that was caught behind. Cameron Green was the only other bowler among wickets, while the rest were put to the sword by Zimbabwe batters.
After this win, Zimbabwe moved into second place in Group B, above Australia, which is in third place with only one win. Sri Lanka is at the top with a couple of wins.
Now, Zimbabwe will take on Ireland in their next group-stage match on Tuesday, while Australia will face Sri Lanka on Monday.