Australia’s World Cup jitters deepened after a shock 23-run defeat to Zimbabwe men’s national cricket team at the R. Premadasa Stadium, and Matthew Renshaw confirmed a fresh injury worry after the game: Marcus Stoinis sustained a hand problem while fielding his own delivery. Renshaw, who top-scored for his side, revealed the incident unfolded when Stoinis tried to stop a ball off his own bowling, immediately calling the physio and leaving the field as Cameron Green finished the over.

“Probably Marcus Stoinis was going to bat higher, he got that hit on the finger, we don’t know how bad it is, I’m sure the medical staff will treat that, but yeah that was the one today but yeah we just weren’t good enough today,” Matthew Renshaw said. He added a measured assessment of the loss: “They played really well… so it’s always tough in a T20 when that happens.”

Stoinis did return later to slog a brief 6 off 4 before Wellington Masakadza wrapped up his stay, but the interruption illustrated Australia’s fragile balance. The defeat followed a disciplined bowling display from Zimbabwe, underpinned by sharp pace work that exposed early weaknesses in Australia’s top order.

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Australia’s campaign has already been disrupted by a string of absences. Senior quicks Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood missed the tournament build-up with fitness issues, while captain Mitchell Marsh was sidelined by a groin problem ahead of the opener — forcing the management to call up Steve Smith as reinforcement.

Marcus Stoinis walked from the field immediately clutching his left hand after a powerful strike from a wide full toss came straight back at the allrounder. #T20WorldCup https://t.co/b0jee5CX4K

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) February 13, 2026

Power-hitter Tim David also had a hamstring setback but returned to the XI for the Colombo fixture. The match will prompt fresh questions about Australia’s depth and contingency planning. With key quicks absent and now Stoinis under a cloud, selectors face important decisions about rotation and workload management as the group stage progresses.

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Australia must regroup quickly: their next assignment is against co-hosts at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on February 16 in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, where recovery, reinforcements and tactical tweaks will be urgently required if they are to revive a campaign already dented by injuries and an unexpected loss.