Taipei: Team Taiwan has wrapped up its 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) Pool C campaign with a 2-2 record, placing its advancement prospects in the hands of the South Korea vs. Australia match on Monday evening.

According to Focus Taiwan, Japan has already secured its place in the quarterfinals in Miami, Florida, with a 3-0 record, while the Czech Republic is eliminated with a 0-3 record. The decisive match between South Korea and Australia will determine the final berth from the group.

Australia faces a straightforward path: a win over South Korea ensures their progression to the next round. However, Taiwan's advancement requires a complex scenario involving a South Korean victory.

Based on WBC tie-breaker rules, a tie in standings is resolved by the head-to-head matchup results. Taiwan, having lost 0-3 to Australia and won 5-4 against South Korea, needs a South Korean victory to force a three-way tie at 2-2. In this situation, where no team has defeated both others, the tie is broken by a defensive run quotient.

Tournament regulations dictate that tied teams are ranked by the lowest quotient of fewest runs allowed divided by the number of defensive outs recorded in games among the tied teams. Taiwan's quotient is set at 0.129, having allowed seven runs over 54 defensive outs in its games against Australia and South Korea.

For Taiwan to advance at the top of the tie-break, Monday's game must result in a specific scoring scenario: South Korea must defeat Australia by scoring at least eight runs, while Australia must score at least three runs in a nine-inning game.

Historically, Taiwan has only reached the WBC quarterfinals once, during the 2013 tournament.