The batter Steve Smith has been added to the Australia T20 World Cup 2026 squad as a replacement for injured Josh Hazlewood.
The fast bowlers have been ruled out of the competition due to calf injury, despite the medical teams having previously hoped to have him fit for the latter part of the tournament.
This has made way for Steve Smith to return to T20Is. Josh Hazlewood was sidelined on February 05, with Australia selector Tony Dodemaide saying, “We were hopeful Josh would be back to match fitness by the Super 8 stage, but the latest indications he is still some time away and accelerating his program will carry too much risk.”
However, Australia has to seek ICC to approve Steve Smith as a replacement on February 15, a day ahead of their next fixture against co-hosts Sri Lanka.
The 36-year-old Steve Smith hasn’t played a T20I since February 2024 and last featured in the T20 World Cup in the 2022 edition. In 14 innings at the T20 World Cup, he has hit just one fifty, striking at 111.76.
Smith had a stellar season in the BBL 2025-26 where he smashed 299 runs, averaging 59.80 and a strike rate of 167.97. He also smashed a century and two fifties. Opening the batting, he topped the run-charts for Sydney Sixers, playing a key role in their run to the final.
He has been training with the squad after being called up to cover for Mitchell Marsh, who missed the first two matches after being hit in the groin while training.
Australia are in the 3rd place in the Group B T20 World Cup 2026 points table. They secured a win against Ireland, but lost the game against Zimbabwe and will be facing Sri Lanka and Oman in the upcoming group stage games.
Australia Update squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Renshaw, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa
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