Cameron Green and Tim David’s consecutive golden ducks became the symbol of Australia’s T20 World Cup disaster as they slumped to a 23-run defeat against Zimbabwe in Colombo. The embarrassing dismissals were part of a wider batting collapse that has thrown Australia’s tournament into chaos.
The back-to-back failures came in the second over of Australia’s chase, both batsmen caught behind off Blessing Muzarabani’s bowling. Green arrived at the crease with Australia already struggling at 17 for 1 and departed first ball without troubling the scorers. David, freshly recovered from injury, suffered an identical fate next delivery, also caught behind for a duck. The consecutive dismissals left Australia reeling at 25 for 3 with the powerplay barely underway.
Muzarabani’s devastating opening spell began when he dismissed Josh Inglis for 8 off his very first delivery. The towering fast bowler then produced two consecutive balls of exceptional quality to remove Green and David, leaving Australia in unprecedented trouble. Travis Head’s dismissal for 17 shortly after made it 29 for 4, completing one of Australia’s worst powerplay performances in T20 World Cup history.
The recovery mission fell to Matthew Renshaw and Glenn Maxwell, who combined for a 77-run partnership that offered fleeting hope. Renshaw was magnificent in scoring 65 off 44 balls, reaching his maiden T20I fifty with powerful stroke play. Maxwell contributed 31 runs batting without a helmet, showing flashes of his brilliant best. However, both players fell at crucial moments, each chopping the ball onto their stumps, and Marcus Stoinis managed only 6 runs.
Zimbabwe’s total of 169-2 was built on Brian Bennett’s unbeaten 64, with Tadiwanashe Marumani and Ryan Burl providing support. Muzarabani’s final figures of 4 for 17 represented the best bowling performance of his career. Australia now faces elimination unless they defeat Sri Lanka in their next match, with net run rate potentially becoming a crucial factor.