Despite being added to Australia’s T20 WC 2026 squad, Steve Smith was omitted from the playing XI throughout the tournament, including the final against Oman, sparking outrage on social media, with fans calling it an ‘insult’ to the veteran batter.
Australia’s talismanic batter Steve Smith was once again omitted from the playing XI in the last T20 World Cup 2026 match against Oman at the Pallekale International Stadium in Kandy on Friday, February 20.
Australia finished their rather disappointing campaign on a high note with a dominant nine-wicket win over Oman. Chasing a modest 105-run target, Mitchell Marsh’s unbeaten 64-run captain knock and Travis Head’s 32 guided the team to victory with ease in 9.4 overs or 62 balls to spare. Marsh and Head stitched a 93-run opening partnership, laying the foundation for a comfortable win.
Earlier, Adam Zampa-led bowling attack bundled Oman for 104 in 16.2 overs. Zampa registered figures of 4/21 at an economy rate of 6.30 in 3.3 overs. Glenn Maxwell picked up two wickets while conceding 13 runs at an economy rate of 4.30 in his spell of 3 overs.
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No Steve Smith in Australia’s Final Game
Australia played their final match of the T20 World Cup 2026 as they were already knocked out of the tournament after failing to qualify for the Super 8 following two successive losses at the hands of Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka. Though Australia managed to finish their campaign on a winning note, Steve Smith’s exclusion from the playing XI was a major topic of debate.
Smith was not part of the main squad when it was announced on 1st January, but the former Australia captain was added to the roster as a cover for Mitchell Starc, who sustained internal testicular bleeding ahead of the opening match against Ireland. Starc recovered from injury, but Smith was added to the squad as a replacement for Josh Hazlewood.
In the matches against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka, Smith did not feature in the playing XI. Since Australia were playing their last match of the tournament against Oman, it was expected that the talismanic batter would feature in the playing XI. However, Mitchell Marsh confirmed at the toss that Matt Renshaw came in for Cooper Connolly, and thus, Steve Smith was once missed out on selection.
Steve Smith had an impressive BBL season, amassing 299 runs, including a century and two fifties, at an average of 59.80 and an impressive strike rate of 167.97 in six matches. Yet, Australia’s top batter was not selected to the main squad initially until being called up as a replacement for Josh Hazlewood.
Despite outstanding performance in the Big Bash League last season, Steve Smith remained on the sidelines throughout the tournament.
Steve Smith Insulted by ,Cricket, Australia?
Steve Smith’s omission from Australia’s playing XI for the final match of the T20 World Cup against Oman sparked intense discussion on social media, especially X handle (formerly Twitter), where fans and cricket enthusiasts questioned Australia team management for making the star batter travel 6000+ kilometres without giving him an opportunity to feature on the field.
Taking to their X handles, fans and cricket enthusiasts expressed their outrage and anger, calling Smith’s omission from the playing XI ‘an insult’, criticising Cricket Australia for making him travel all the way from Australia to Sri Lanka just to bench him, and demanding that senior players of his stature be given a proper opportunity in the final match.
In his T20I career, Steve Smith has amassed 1094 runs, including five fifties, at an average of 24.86 and a strike rate of 125.46 in 67 matches.
Meanwhile, Australia will head back home in disappointment as they failed to go past the group stage of the T20 World Cup 2026. Since the 2023 World Cup triumph, Australia are yet to win any silverware, having fallen short in subsequent ICC tournaments despite entering the events as a strong contender.
