Adam Zampa took four wickets and Mitch Marsh slammed 64 not out as Australia finished third in Group B
Australia have thumped Oman to sign off on a disastrous T20 World Cup campaign with a nine-wicket win.
Already eliminated from the tournament following consecutive losses to Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka, Australia rolled the 20th-ranked men’s T20 nation for 104 after Mitch Marsh opted to bowl in Kandy.
Player of the match Adam Zampa (4-21 in 3.2 overs) led the rout as Oman were dismissed in the 17th over, but the wickets yielded minimal celebration with the former champions on their way home after the match.
Marsh then belted 64 not out in 33 balls and Travis Head contributed 34 off 19 as Australia reached their target two balls before the end of the 10th over.
The result sees Australia finish third in Group B, two points behind Sri Lanka and three adrift of Zimbabwe, who head into the Super Eight phase undefeated after also beating the co-hosts in Colombo on Thursday.
It’s the first time Australia haven’t made it past the group stage in a men’s T20 World Cup since 2009 and they’ve now missed the semi-finals in the past three editions after claiming their maiden T20 world title in 2021.
Marsh hit seven fours and cleared the rope another four times as he and Head made light work of their opponent’s meagre total. The Aussie skipper has put on opening partnerships of 104 and now 93 with Head after missing the first two matches of his side’s campaign against Ireland and Zimbabwe with a testicular injury.
One of Marsh’s sixes sailed 99m onto the hill square of the wicket at Pallekele Stadium, while Oman’s only breakthrough came via a chaotic fielding effort as spinner Shakeel Ahmed almost collided with wicketkeeper Vinayak Shukla to hang onto Head’s skied slog sweep.
Josh Inglis (12no off six) hit the winning boundary with a flamboyant lofted straight drive on one leg off left-arm seamer Jiten Ramanandi as victory was achieved with 62 balls to spare.
“It’s a bitterly disappointed changeroom,” Marsh reflected during the post-match presentation. “Like every team, we built for two years to get here and unfortunately, we didn’t play our best in a couple of games that we needed to.
“You lose that game to Zimbabwe; you’re under pressure and fair play to them, we wish them all the best, but we’re very disappointed.
“The leaders that we’ve got within Cricket Australia will look at it, and we’ll look at it as players and as a team on ways to keep ensuring that we get better.
“If we’re lucky enough to have the opportunity as a group again, (it’s ensuring) that we’re better. When you fail, there’s always great learnings.
“We couldn’t be more disappointed in the way that it’s panned out but we go home and we reflect and we move on.”
Xavier Bartlett (2-27) struck first ball of the match as left-hander Aamir Kaleem was bowled for a duck, with Glenn Maxwell also picking up two wickets, including his 50th in T20 internationals.
Four of Oman’s top five reached double figures but none could kick on as Zampa struck in his first and second overs, as well as twice in two balls to start his fourth to end the innings.
Steve Smith wasn’t required again as Australia left out Cooper Connolly for Matthew Renshaw, who finished third in the side’s tournament runs tally with 102 in two innings, behind Marsh (118 in two innings) and Head (111).
The Super Eight stage kicks off on Saturday night with New Zealand taking on Pakistan in Colombo.
2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup
Australia squad: Mitch Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa. Travelling reserve: Sean Abbott
Australia’s Group Stage fixtures
February 11: beat Ireland by 67 runs
February 13: lost to Zimbabwe by 23 runs
February 16: lost to Sri Lanka by eight wickets
February 20: beat Oman by nine wickets
Click here for the full tournament schedule
All matches will be broadcast on Amazon’s Prime Video
