T20 World Cup 2026: 'A statement win from Zimbabwe against Australia' - Sachin Tendulkar reacts to first upset in the marquee event

Sachin Tendulkar lavished praise on the Zimbabwean team after they defeated former champions Australia in the T20 World Cup clash at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Friday, February 13.

The former India captain said that Zimbabwe showed real character and commended Blessing Muzarabani for his exceptional performance with the ball, which earned him the Player of the Match award. Muzarabani struck twice in the powerplay and took two more wickets at the back end of the innings to finish with exemplary figures of 4/17 in four overs. After the monumental upset, Tendulkar expressed his excitement with how the marquee event is taking shape.

"A statement win from Zimbabwe! Beating Australia by 23 runs takes real character. And of course, Blessing turned out to be just that, a blessing in the truest sense, with a superb 4 wicket spell. What an exciting tournament this is shaping up to be!" Tendulkar wrote on his official 'X' (formerly Twitter) handle.

Earlier in the day, Australia won the toss and opted to field first. Zimbabwean openers batted with resolve and mixed caution with aggression to put on a 61-run stand inside eight overs. Brian Bennett anchored the innings with an unbeaten 64 off 56 balls, while Tadiwanashe Marumani and Ryan Burl chipped in with handy contributions. However, Sikandar Raza's unbeaten 25 off 13 balls at the death helped Zimbabwe finish with a flourish.

Chasing a 170-run target on a sluggish surface, Australia lost four wickets inside the first five overs. Glenn Maxwell and Matt Renshaw kept their team in the hunt with a 77-run partnership off 59 balls. However, after Maxwell was dismissed for an uncharacteristic 31 off 32 balls, Renshaw was left with too much to do by himself. The southpaw was eventually dismissed for 65 in the penultimate over. Three balls into the final over, Australia were bowled out for 146.