T20 World Cup: Josh Hazlewood hopeful of making comeback
03 Feb 2026

Australia's fast-bowling ace Josh Hazlewood is on the road to recovery and hopes to make a return for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2026, starting on February 7.

The pacer had missed the Ashes series due to hamstring and Achilles injuries.

He was initially expected to be fit in time for Australia's warm-up match in Sri Lanka ahead of the tournament, but his rehab timeline has been pushed back a bit.

His T20 stats
Performance stats

Despite not playing a T20 match for nearly four years between March 2016 and January 2020, Hazlewood has an impressive T20 record.

He has taken 133 wickets at an average of 20.44 and an economy rate of 7.57 since his return to the format.

The pacer was Australia's leading wicket-taker in last year's Indian Premier League (IPL), helping Royal Challengers Bangalore with his performance.

Hazlewood has been sensational in T20Is
Fact

Notably, Hazlewood has also been sensational in T20Is for the Aussies, claiming 79 wickets from just 60 matches at an economy rate of 7.47. As he happens to be the most experienced pacer in the squad, the Aussies would not want to lose his services.

Hazlewood on experience
Game strategy

Hazlewood is the only one of Australia's Big Three to have played T20Is since the last World Cup, in the Caribbean.

"You just know your game so well. You're experienced and you keep a pretty level head," he said as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

The pacer can bowl at any stage of a T20 innings but has shown his adaptability by taking wickets with length or short-of-a-good-length deliveries.

Hazlewood on T20 World Cup
Future plans

Hazlewood is looking forward to the T20 World Cup 2026 and is in the process of completing his rehab.

He said, "I think World Cups in particular, every game means a little bit more."

The pacer believes that the pressure of a World Cup can potentially bring scores down a peg or two.

He added, "If you get out, you can lose that game and be out of the tournament."