T20 World Cup 2026: Marsh backs injury-hit Australia to showcase squad depth

Tim David won’t be available for Australia’s opening T20 World Cup 2026 fixture against Ireland, but is expected to be back in contention over the next few days, captain Mitchell Marsh said on Tuesday, the eve of the Group B clash in Colombo at the R. Premadasa Stadium.

David injured his hamstring during the Big Bash League (BBL) in December and has been on the road to recovery since. Although he has joined the squad in Colombo, it remains to be seen when he will be fit enough to take the field.

“We certainly see him coming back into contention in the next few days,” Marsh said.

Australia will be the last among the 20 teams to open its campaign in the world event and has already seen how the full-member nations have been put in uncomfortable positions by the associates.

“There have been some great games since the start of the World Cup, and that’s what you want. It’s been awesome to watch so far,” Marsh said. “We treat every team the same. We prepare the same way, do our homework, and then it’s about going out there and executing on the day. No matter who we’re playing, we have that mentality,” he added.

For Australia, however, the lead-up to the World Cup wasn’t ideal, with the team flying to Sri Lanka following a 0-3 defeat against Pakistan in Lahore. Marsh insisted that his side has moved on after taking the lessons from that tour.

“There were some great learnings from that tour. We had some young guys who were exposed to those conditions for probably the first time in their careers. As we always say, we take the lessons and move on.”

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Spin has dictated terms so far in the tournament, and Marsh’s side is aware of the challenge ahead and has prepared accordingly.

“We certainly want to be positive in the way we go about things. I think these conditions are about being really clear on how you’re going to approach it: applying what’s in front of you,” the captain said.

With senior bowlers Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood unavailable for the tournament, Australia will bank on pacers Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, and Xavier Bartlett to do the job, and Marsh has full confidence in them.

“Guys like Patty haven’t played a lot for us over the last few years because of his hectic schedule. Over the last 12 months, guys like Ben Dwarshuis and Xavier Bartlett have played pretty much all of our games.

“We’ve got great confidence that they’ll be able to do the role for us, and they’ve excelled in some games. So we’re confident with the group we’ve got here, and we’ve built that over the last 12 months,” Marsh said.

Published on Feb 10, 2026