Overview:
He further provided clarity on whether Hazlewood would be in contention for Australia in the early stages of the tournament.
Australia will head into the T20 World Cup 2026 with injured Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood. The development was confirmed by George Bailey, who leads Cricket Australia’s selection panel.
Both Cummins and Hazlewood have been included in Australia’s preliminary World Cup squad, but the two will miss the upcoming T20I series against Pakistan.
Speaking to reporters, Bailey indicated that Cummins’ status for the T20 World Cup next year is still unclear, even as he expressed confidence about both pacers edging closer to a comeback following their exclusion from the Pakistan series.
“They won’t be part of the Pakistan tour, but we believe both will be ready for the World Cup,” Bailey said during his media interaction.
“Pat might come in a little later. It could be similar to what we saw with Travis Head during the ODI World Cup. Hopefully, we can manage Cummins and keep him in the squad until that window opens,” he added, while confirming Cummins would miss the opening phase of the tournament.
He further provided clarity on whether Hazlewood would be in contention for Australia in the early stages of the tournament.
“‘Hoff’ should be good to go at the start, but there’s always a chance circumstances may force a change in the squad,” Bailey added.
“We came very close to facing the same call with Travis,” concluded, recalling Travis Head’s injury during the ODI World Cup.