"It’s a shame": Jacob Bethell twists knife in Australia’s T20 World Cup wounds

Australia’s shocking exit from the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026 has created massive buzz, and England’s young star Jacob Bethell has now added more fuel to the fire. Jacob Bethell could not hide his feelings about Australia crashing out in the group stage.

Jacob Bethell reacts to Australia’s early exit from the T20 World Cup 2026

The talented top-order batter, who has been in red-hot form since the 2025-26 Ashes and carried that form into the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026, said that seeing Australia out of the title race was a positive sign for other teams fighting for the trophy.

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Jacob Bethell said in a video posted by Test Match Special, X: “It was good to see. They just didn’t seem like they got fired up in the tournament. And in those group stage matches, if you don’t hit the ground running, you’re in danger of that happening. So yeah, it was a shame for them.”

Jacob Bethell couldn't help a wry smile when asked about Australia exiting the T20 World Cup at the group stage. pic.twitter.com/a4gAPp3YQc

— Test Match Special (@bbctms) February 20, 2026

Australia's disastrous T20 World Cup 2026 campaign

Australia began their campaign strongly on February 11 in Colombo with a big 67-run win over Ireland. Many fans believed the former champions were ready for another strong run. But things quickly turned into fresh embarrassment.

In their next two Group B matches, the Kangaroos suffered back-to-back defeats. Zimbabwe stunned them with a 23-run win, and then Sri Lanka crushed them by 8 wickets. These losses completely changed the picture. Their hopes were hanging on Zimbabwe’s final group matches.

But the rain in Kandy was the final blow. Zimbabwe’s game against Ireland on February 17 was washed out, and that result officially ended Australia’s T20 World Cup 2026 campaign. It was a massive setback for the 2021 T20 World Cup trophy winners.

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Jacob Bethell sends a strong warning before Super Eights

Meanwhile, England may not have looked dangerous in the group stage, but Bethell sent a strong warning before the Super Eights of the T20 World Cup 2026, saying the real fight is about to begin.

England entered the tournament as one of the strong teams, but their group campaign did not go as planned. The 2022 champions suffered a heavy defeat against the West Indies, but they managed to beat Nepal, Scotland, and Italy, though their performances were far from convincing.

Now the focus shifts to the Super Eights, and England are determined to change the story. Bethell stated, “I think there's definitely a little fire in all of us to kind of really go out there and push the players to the top of their performances.”

England ready for fresh fight in Sri Lanka

The squad has moved to Kandy after playing their group matches in India. Interestingly, Kandy has been a happy ground for them, having recently clean-swept Sri Lanka 3-0 in a T20 series at the same venue. England will begin their Super Eights journey on February 22 against Sri Lanka.

Bethell signed off by saying, “We're coming back to conditions that were foreign a few weeks ago; we then got to know him over three games here. We beat them 3-0, so I think we're definitely coming back to this part of the world with a lot of confidence.”