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Australia vs Zimbabwe 2026 T20 World Cup Tips - Value in the Underdog Cover

Ryan Tucker

Editor

Last updated: Fri 13 Feb 2026 11:17

Ryan Tucker 13 Feb 2026

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Australia is favored, but betting on Zimbabwe's handicap offers value.
Adam Zampa expected to excel on a spin-friendly pitch.
First wicket method could be an alternative betting opportunity.

Expired

Australia's Adam Zampa tries to field the ball during the 2026 ICC Men's T20 Cricket World Cup group stage match between Ireland and Australia at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on February 11, 2026. (Photo by Ishara S. KODIKARA / AFP via Getty Images)

Australia vs Zimbabwe 2026 T20 World Cup Tips

Australia are extremely short priced favourites to win their second game of the T20 World Cup against Zimbabwe on Friday in Colombo. But there is value in backing the Underdog.

Australia vs Zimbabwe 2026 T20 World Cup Tips
Head to Head Record
Australia Form
Australia Squad
Zimbabwe Form
Zimbabwe Squad
Australia vs Zimbabwe Frequently Asked Questions

The Aussies entered this tournament with injury concerns and without a couple of top line players, especially on the bowling end. But their depth has shone through with Nathan Ellis and Adam Zampa. Now with Glenn Maxwell facing time on the sidelines and captain Mitch Marsh nursing a groin injury, Steve Smith has been called in as a replacement.

This shouldn’t trouble the Australians though, with a deep batting lineup that would make any bowling team sweat and a raft of spin options to keep the opposition guessing.

Zimbabwe are riding high on confidence after a dramatic win first up against Oman. They took early wickets and will be looking to penetrate the Aussie batting defence with the tall Blessing Muzarabani that can extract bounce in even the most spin friendly pitches.

We saw in the warm up games in Pakistan that Australia can be brittle if troubled early. If not for some poor shot making decisions from Ireland, even that game could have ended closer. The question for bettors is whether or not Zimbabwe are 17 runs better than Ireland. The answer is yes.

Take Zimbabwe to cover the -6.5 wicket / -50.5 run handicap. Australia will win but the value lies in the opportunity. Over the first round of games the method of first wickets have been varied, a sneaky pick at first wicket method “Any Other” is a nice play. Take Adam Zampa to pick up 3+ wickets on a turning pitch.

Australia beat Ireland by 67 runs, Zimbabwe are a much better batting and bowling team.
Over 37% of first wickets in the tournament have been by a method other than caught, which is a touch over the implied probability.
Both first wickets in Australia and Zimbabwe’s first games were not caught out.
The Colombo deck is prime for spinners, Zampa took 4 wickets in his first outing.

Head to Head Record

Australia: 2

Zimbabwe: 1

Draw: 0

Australia won both of the T20 Tri-Series matches in 2018, the last time these two teams met in competition.

Australia Form

Australia had a resounding 67 run victory in their first World Cup hitout against Ireland on Wednesday. The Aussies won the toss and elected to bat and looked a little shaky at the start with captain Travis Head being run out for 6.

They then settled into a rhythm with Josh Inglis, Matt Renshaw and Marcus Stoinis all scoring 30+ runs. Cooper Connolly reached 11 not out after a disastrous warm up series against Pakistan.

Nathan Ellis and Adam Zampa did the damage with the ball taking 4 wickets each, Ellis’s wickets coming from mostly from good bowling compared to poor batter shot selection.

Australia Squad

Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Renshaw, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa, Steve Smith

Zimbabwe Form

Zimbabwe won their opening match of the tournament on Monday against Oman by 8 wickets with 39 balls remaining. They won the toss and sent in Oman to bat while taking the first 5 wickets for just 27 runs.

Richard Ngarava, Blessing Muzarabani and Brad Evans all grabbed 3 wickets in the match while staying under 20 runs conceded. With bat in hand, the openers put on 30 quick runs off the first 3 overs before losing the first wicket but steered the ship home without any major dramas.

Zimbabwe Squad

Sikandar Raza (c), Brian Bennett, Ryan Burl, Graeme Cremer, Bradley Evans, Clive Madande, Tinotenda Maposa, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Tony Munyonga, Tashinga Musekiwa, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Brendan Taylor

Australia vs Zimbabwe Frequently Asked Questions

What time does Australia vs Zimbabwe start?

First ball between Australia vs Zimbabwe is at 4:30 PM AEDT, Friday 13th February

What channel is Australia vs Zimbabwe on?

You can watch Australia vs Zimbabwe on Amazon Prime

Verdict

Australia v Zimbabwe

ZIM -6.5wkt/-50.5runs

Line

$1.70 - 2 Units

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Any Other (2-Way)

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