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Former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif launched a sharp criticism of Australia following their shocking elimination from the T20 World Cup 2026. Kaif highlighted Australia’s performances in the last three ICC tournaments as evidence of what he described as a decline after their 2023 ODI World Cup triumph.
Australia were knocked out in the Super Eight stage of the 2024 T20 World Cup, suffered a semi-final defeat in the 2025 Champions Trophy, and went down in the final of the 2025 World Test Championship. Kaif pointed to this sequence of results to underline what he believes is a downward trend in their recent ICC campaigns.
He further added that the presence of all-rounder Hardik Pandya might have altered the outcome of the 2023 ODI World Cup final against India, suggesting that Australia would have faced a tougher challenge had Pandya been available for that contest.
"Mighty Aussies they were called after winning the 2023 50-overs World Cup. After that they had a sharp fall. 2024 World T20, 2025 Champions Trophy, 2025 World Test Championship - they were not Mighty. If Hardik Pandya had played the Ahmedabad final in 2023, the Aussies would have lost there too,” wrote Kaif on X.
Hardik suffered an ankle injury during the 2023 ODI World Cup in a match against Bangladesh, which ruled him out of the remainder of the tournament. His absence was widely felt, particularly in the latter stages, as India missed the balance he brings as a seam-bowling all-rounder.
Speaking about Australia, the team has struggled to replicate its past dominance since winning the T20 World Cup in 2021. They have endured several disappointing campaigns, but none as shocking as their early exit from the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026.
Australia began their campaign on a positive note with a convincing win over Ireland. However, they suffered a surprising 23-run defeat to Zimbabwe, which put them under pressure. That result left them in a must-win situation against Sri Lanka on February 16. Despite a strong start with the bat, Australia failed to close out the game as Sri Lanka chased down the target comfortably, powered by Pathum Nissanka’s unbeaten century.
The final blow came when the Zimbabwe-Ireland fixture was abandoned due to rain, officially confirming Australia’s elimination from the tournament. Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe progressed from Group B to the Super Eight stage. Zimbabwe will now face West Indies, India, and South Africa in the next round.
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