Mahli Beardman updates, video, Australian injury list, T20 World Cup squad

Australia’s injury crisis has deepened after scans confirmed that fast bowler Mahli Beardman had sustained a lumbar bone stress fracture, ruling him out for the remainder of the season.

The 20-year-old, who is mentored by cricket legend Dennis Lillee, was preparing to play Australia’s second T20 against Pakistan in Lahore when he reported lower back soreness during the warm-up, withdrawn from the starting XI at the last minute.

He returned home to Perth and underwent scans that confirmed the injury, Cricket Australia revealed on Saturday.

“He will now enter an extended period of rehabilitation and will be unavailable for the remainder of the domestic season,” CA confirmed in a statement.

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Beardman made his international debut during last week’s first T20 against Pakistan following a breakout Big Bash League campaign with champions the Perth Scorchers, taking 13 wickets including two in the final. He claimed 2-33 from four overs during the series opener at Gaddafi Stadium, which Australia lost by 22 runs.

The Cowaramup product would have been in the frame for Australia’s upcoming white-ball tours of Pakistan and Bangladesh, but that now appears unlikely.

Western Australia was expected to hand Beardman a Sheffield Shield debut at some stage during the second half of this season’s competition, but he will need to wait until next summer for a maiden first-class appearance.

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Last year, West Australian bowling coach Tim MacDonald spoke to Fox Cricket about how Beardman needed to change his bowling action because it was putting a lot of strain on his lumbar region.

“His lower back was crunching pretty hard at a time when it was still growing and his bones were still widening,” MacDonald explained.

“He’s taking a little bit of pressure off that, trying to make his action a bit more efficient – but at the same time you don’t want to lose his natural attributes, his natural swing and his natural pace.

“He’s had to shift some of the mechanics in his action to make it a little bit safer and repeatable so that he can actually stay on the park a bit longer.

“At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how fast you are, if you’re not on the park you obviously can’t show everyone how good you are.”

Beardman joins a growing list of Australian fast bowlers in the casualty ward, including superstar duo Pat Cummins (back) and Josh Hazlewood (achilles), who were both withdrawn from the T20 World Cup due to injury.

West Australian speedster Lance Morris missed the entire 2025/26 season to undergo back surgery, while left-armer Spencer Johnson hasn’t played a professional match since April due to a back injury.

On Saturday, South Australian seamer Brendan Doggett suffered an apparent hamstring injury during the Sheffield Shield match against New South Wales at the SCG, spotted leaving the venue on crutches.

Elsewhere, Tasmanian quick Nathan Ellis missed the second half of the BBL due to a hamstring complaint, but he is expected to be available during the early stages of Australia’s T20 World Cup campaign.

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