Australia’s T20 World Cup campaign has suffered a severe blow just five days before their opening match, with pace bowler Josh Hazlewood officially ruled out of the tournament due to injury.

The news comes as a double blow for the 2021 champions, who had already lost Test and ODI captain Pat Cummins to injury earlier.

Hazlewood, who has been battling ongoing hamstring and Achilles issues, did not travel with the squad to co-host nation Sri Lanka earlier this week.

Instead, he remained in Sydney for rehabilitation. Cricket Australia (CA) selector Tony Dodemaide confirmed that while the team had hoped for a late recovery, the timeline was too tight.

“We were hoping Josh would be fit to return for the Super Eights matches,” Dodemaide said. “However, the latest information indicates that he will need more time to be fully ready. Accelerating his preparation at this stage would significantly increase the risk of further injury.”

Hazlewood had been in stellar form in the T20 format last year, playing a pivotal role in Royal Challengers Bengaluru's IPL title win and performing well in series against South Africa, New Zealand, and India.

His troubles began with a hamstring injury during a Sheffield Shield match prior to the Ashes, followed by a recurring Achilles problem.

Cricket Australia has not yet named a replacement, though Sean Abbott is currently with the squad as a traveling reserve.

“We are not announcing a replacement player at this moment. We feel our squad is balanced enough for the initial matches. A decision will be made later based on priority if the situation demands,” Dodemaide added.

Injured Cummins left out of Australia’s T20 World Cup squad

The injury crisis in the Australian camp extends beyond the pace attack. The team fielded only 11 fit players for Thursday's warm-up match against the Netherlands in Colombo, which was eventually washed out.

However, there is some positive news, as leg-spinner Adam Zampa, who suffered a groin strain against Pakistan on February 1, is expected to be fit for the opener against Ireland. Nathan Ellis and Tim David are reportedly “on track” to recover from their respective hamstring issues for the group stage.