The Team That Had Nothing Now Has the World Watching

The T20 World Cup 2026 has been all about the teams which were considered as finished, coming out on top over the full members. One such team is Zimbabwe, who have now marched to the Super Eight stages of the tournament. There was a time when the team had to ask for sponsors publicly, and they now stand above the full member nations in the tournament.

This T20 World Cup has given several teams an opportunity to prove their worth at a global stage. While some teams may not have been able to take its advantage, Zimbabwe ensured that they got every bit of it. After a long wait, the team has now finally marched into the Super Eight stages of the tournament.

When the tournament started, no one expected Zimbabwe to come out on top against teams like Sri Lanka and Australia. But defying all the odds, they have made it to the Super Eight stages of the tournament, eliminating Australia from the Group stages. At the same time, an old tweet of Ryan Burl has gone viral, which is enough to show how well the game has grown in Zimbabwe.

Ryan Burl’s Old Tweet

On 22 May 2021, Ryan Burl made a tweet on his official account. In that tweet, he posted a photo of his worn shoes, showing their condition after the team had just played a bilateral series. Posting a photo of the same, he said, “Any chance we can get a sponsor so we don’t have to glue our shoes back after every series.”

In this post, he also tagged some of the popular sporting brands such as New Balance, thinking to get a reply. At that point, his post received way too much support from the fans worldwide, as it seemed disheartening watching the players play for their country in such conditions. Several Indian businessmen also commented on his post, to show their support to him and his team.

But amidst all this, one famous company joined the chat and helped Ryan Burl with his issues. Puma Cricket's official Twitter page retweeted Ryan Burl's tweet, and said that they have got him covered. And this is where the Zimbabwe team finally got a sponsor, in the form of Puma cricket. A renowned brand started offering them with apparels and shoes, just after a tweet from Ryan Burl.

T20 World Cup 2022 & 2024 Struggles

T20 World Cup 2022

In the T20 World Cup 2022, Zimbabwe entered their first ICC tournament with Puma as their kit sponsor. But this tournament didn't come out as one which the team could have expected. In the Qualifier stages, they were able to win two out of the three games and topped their group.

Pic Source: ESPNcricinfo

Later they were put down in a strong group with teams such as India, Pakistan, and South Africa. Zimbabwe were unable to do well in the main tournament, as they finished at the last spot in the group stages. But they were fortunate enough to cause an upset in the same, as the team defeated Pakistan by just one run.

T20 World Cup 2024

In the T20 World Cup 2024, the team failed to even secure a spot in the group stages of the tournament. They secured some upset losses against Namibia and Uganda, which eventually led to Zimbabwe not finishing well in the Africa Region Qualifier. This tournament was held in late 2023, and with Zimbabwe's loss, Uganda and Namibia were able to take up their spots in the T20 World Cup 2024.

Resurgence in T20 World Cup 2026

A team which didn't qualify for the previous edition of the tournament has now reached the Super Eight stages of the current one. Zimbabwe seemed to have scripted the perfect comeback story in the history of the game, as they now prepare for the upcoming task. The team currently stands undefeated in the group stages of the tournament.

They started off with a win against Oman by 8 wickets and went on to give the biggest upset against Australia. In its second group stage clash, Zimbabwe was able to defeat Australia by 23 runs and this strengthened their chances to reach the next stage. With their clash against Ireland being washed out and Australia losing to Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe has now made it to the Super Eight stages.

Seizing the moment, Puma Cricket once again posted on their Twitter account. They highlighted the tweet done by Ryan Burl and their response to the same which took place back in 2021. And now, almost five years after the same, it is the same team which has managed to defeat Australia in the T20 World Cup 2026.