Cricket: Zimbabwe Knock Out Australia, Ireland from T20 World Cup

Both Ireland and Australia have been eliminated from the T20 World Cup after rain scuppered play in the crucial Group B fixture between Ireland and Zimbabwe at Pallekele Cricket Stadium in Kandy.

Zimbabwe’s unexpected victory over Australia meant they only needed a point on Tuesday to progress to the Super 8s, making the match a must-win for Ireland to keep their qualification hopes alive. Australia, reeling from an eight-wicket defeat to Sri Lanka on Monday, were also relying on an Irish win to remain in contention.

However, with persistent rain in Kandy, the match was abandoned, resulting in Ireland and Zimbabwe sharing a point each. This leaves Zimbabwe on five points and Ireland, whose four-game campaign is now complete, on three. Australia sit on two points with just one game remaining against Oman on Friday, which is now a dead rubber.

“It’s very disappointing to go out in this fashion, but it’s completely uncontrollable,” commented Ireland’s stand-in skipper Lorcan Tucker. “It looked like we were building momentum with the Oman win, but unfortunately, it came too late.”

Zimbabwe will now face Sri Lanka in Colombo on Thursday to determine the Group B winner, with both teams already assured of a spot in the next phase of the tournament.