Australia had to pull out as the Zimbabwe vs Ireland match on 17 February was abandoned due to rain at Balagola. As the second best team in Group B, Zimbabwe will join India, South Africa and West Indies in Group 1 for the eighth round.
With Australia out of the equation despite being a stronger team, India will have to face Zimbabwe in the upcoming edition of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026. On paper, as an opposition side, Zimbabwe could be an easy opponent for Team India.
We did not face any problem: Sitanshu Kotak
Team India has been in dominant form since the beginning of the tournament. In the group stage, the defending champions are undefeated so far after playing three matches, which were against the United States, Namibia and Pakistan. The Men in Blue will play their fourth group match against Netherlands on February 18.
Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak said that the entire team is not worried about the disappointing campaign of the Australian cricket team. It doesn’t matter which team India has to perform against, the focus will be the same – win. Like many cricket experts, Kotak was also confident of seeing the Australian team through to the next round of the competition. Theoretically, they were among the top contenders to play the semi-finals.
The shocking defeat against Zimbabwe would have hurt the Australian team’s momentum and prospects the most in the T20 World Cup 2026. Kotak said that as soon as Zimbabwe defeated Australia, they knew that the rest of the way in the tournament would not be safe for Australia.
“Everyone was thinking that Australia would qualify and be in our group in the Super 8. We were also aware of this possibility. But when we lost to Zimbabwe, we realized that Zimbabwe could end up in our group. Today’s match between Zimbabwe and Ireland was washed out due to rain,” Sitanshu Kotak told the media during the pre-match press conference at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Tuesday.
India will play against Zimbabwe
Team India’s batting coach further said that whether it is Zimbabwe or Australia, the team will take the field to give its best performance. In the eighth round, along with Zimbabwe, the team led by Suryakumar Yadav will also have to play against South Africa and West Indies.
He said, “After the match against Zimbabwe, looking at the conditions, we knew that the match against Sri Lanka would be difficult for Australia. I don’t think we are worried about what happened. Either we will play Australia, or we will play Zimbabwe. Whoever we play against, we will try to give our best performance.”
Rajeev Shukla congratulated Zimbabwe for its progressive nature
BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla wrote on social media that the emergence of the Zimbabwe cricket team is a good sign for the cricket ecosystem. He congratulates Chevron for showcasing high level cricket in the 2026 T20 World Cup.
This World Cup continues to surprise and inspire. Australia’s exit and Zimbabwe’s qualification for the Super Eights really shows the increasing competitiveness of the game. Congratulations @ZimCricketv . pic.twitter.com/RTFgN6KaTm
– Rajeev Shukla (@ShuklaRajiv) 17 February 2026
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