Match Overview
Australia will take on Zimbabwe in the 19th match of the T20 World Cup 2026 on Friday, February 13, at the R.Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. The match will start at 11:00 AM Local Time.
Australia has played 10 T20I matches in Colombo to date and has won 8. The team last lost a game here during the 2012 T20 World Cup. Zimbabwe played three matches here during their tour of Sri Lanka in 2024 and won one.
Both teams have played one game each and are still in the early stages of their campaigns. A win here will enhance their chances of qualifying for the Super 8. The two teams are in Group B, along with co-hosts Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka and Australia are the two favourites to move to the next stage from this group. Zimbabwe will enter this game with nothing to lose, making it important from the tournament’s perspective. Also, given how associate countries have performed, Zimbabwe will look to continue in the same role.
Quick Recap
Australia played their first game of the tournament against Ireland and scored 182 runs for the loss of six wickets. Mitchell Marsh was unavailable for the game, and Travis Head led the team in his absence. Marcus Stoinis provided a late cameo with his knock of 45 runs off 29 deliveries. Matt Renshaw and Josh Inglis were the two other batters who scored more than 30 runs for the team.
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The bowlers were on top of their mark and dismissed four Irish batters in the power play. Ireland got bundled out for 115 runs, and Australia won the match by 67 runs. Nathan Ellis and Adam Zampa took four wickets each. Ellis won the Player of the Match award for his bowling performance.
Zimbabwe faced Oman in their first game of the tournament and elected to bowl after winning the toss. The Zimbabwean bowlers delivered a clinical performance with the ball as Oman were all out for a mere 103 runs in 19.5 overs. Richard Ngarava, Blessing Muzarabani, and Brad Evans took three wickets each for the team. Zimbabwe lost two wickets in the fourth over of their innings. However, it didn’t have a major impact on their chase as Zimbabwe took 13.3 overs to win the game.
Head to Head
Zimbabwe and Australia have played three T20I matches against each other to date. Australia has won two out of these three matches. Zimbabwe’s only win against Australia in T20Is came during the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup.
Pitch & Conditions Report
The surface at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo may remain slow throughout the game and provide significant help to the bowlers. The average first-innings score in T20Is has been 150 runs. The team winning the toss might look to bowl. There is a decent probability of rain happening during the game.
Playing XI Updates & Injury News
Both teams are likely to field an unchanged 11. Mitchell Marsh missed the first game against Ireland as he continued his recovery from a groin injury, while Tim David sat out of the first match with a hamstring concern. Steve Smith has been called to the squad as a standby player.
Also Read: England vs West Indies T20 World Cup 2026 Review – Windies spin trap seals 30-run win.
Australia’s playing 11:
Travis Head (c), Josh Inglis (wk), Cameron Green, Matt Renshaw, Cooper Connolly, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Nathan Ellis, Xavier Bartlett, Matthew Kuhnemann, Adam Zampa
Zimbabwe’s playing 11:
Brian Bennett, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Dion Myers, Brendan Taylor (wk), Sikandar Raza (c), Ryan Burl, Tashinga Musekiwa, Brad Evans, Wellington Masakadza, Richard Ngarava, Blessing Muzarabani
Match Prediction
Australia start as clear favourites, but Zimbabwe can’t be taken lightly in T20 cricket.
