New Delhi [India], January 31 (ANI): The Australian men's cricket team copped a massive blow as Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the upcoming ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 due to injury. Australia finalised their 15-member squad for the marquee tournament, set to be held in India and Sri Lanka from February 7-March 8. Mitchell Marsh is set to captain the 2021 T20 World Cup winners.

Pat Cummins has not fully recovered from his ongoing back injury and will miss the tournament, as per the ICC website. Top-order batter Matthew Short has also been left out of the original 15-member squad.

Ben Dwarshuis and Matthew Renshaw have been included in Australia's squad.

Australia squad for T20 World Cup 2026:

Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Renshaw, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa.

Selector Tony Dodemaide expressed confidence about Dwarshuis and Renshaw, believing they can deliver strong performances in the World Cup.

'With Pat needing more time to recover from his back injury Ben is a ready replacement who offers a left-arm pace option as well as dynamic fielding and late-order hitting. We believe his ability to swing the ball at good pace along with clever variations will be well suited to the conditions we expect and overall structure of the squad,' Dodemaide said as quoted by the ICC website.

'Matt (Renshaw) has impressed in all formats of late, including in multiple roles in white ball formats for Australia, the Queensland Bulls and the Brisbane Heat. With the top order settled and spin heavy conditions expected in the pool stages in Sri Lanka, we also feel Matt provides extra middle order support, with Tim David completing his return to play program in the early phase of the tournament,' Dodemaide added.

Australia are slotted in Group B of the 2026 T20 World Cup, alongside Ireland, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and Oman. They will play their first World Cup match against Ireland on February 11 at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. (ANI)