Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) are grappling with uncertainty over the availability of their star pacer Josh Hazlewood as they prepare for the business end of the Indian Premier League 2025 (IPL 2025).
The Australian fast bowler, a linchpin of RCB’s bowling attack, has been sidelined by a shoulder niggle, raising concerns about his participation in the crucial phase of the tournament.
RCB’s Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat, provided an update on Josh Hazlewood’s condition, highlighting the team’s cautious approach as they navigate the resumption of the tournament following a week-long suspension due to India-Pakistan cross-border tensions.
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RCB Await Clarity on Josh Hazlewood’s Fitness
Hazlewood, who has been a standout performer with 18 wickets in 10 matches this season, missed RCB’s last game before the break against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on May 3 due to the injury.
His absence is a significant concern for RCB, who are second on the points table with 16 points from 11 matches and need just one more win to secure a playoff berth.
Providing an update on his fitness, Bobat informed the media that the pacer is in Australia, still recovering from the shoulder niggle.
"And in Josh Hazlewood’s case, he’s obviously been managing a shoulder niggle, which he’s had for a couple of weeks now. He’s still back in Australia and he’s still working on his rehab to come back from that shoulder niggle. We don’t have any updates right now at the minute, so we’re going to have to take that day-by-day," said Bobat as quoted in the RCB Bold Diaries show.
The IPL’s sudden suspension and subsequent resumption posed significant logistical hurdles for RCB, as Bobat further detailed.
"Once we got the schedule, we didn’t have much time to try and make sense of it and try and understand what we needed to do to get ready for our first game. So overnight we were trying to find out as much security detail as possible because we needed to communicate that to the players. We made a very quick decision to communicate to the Indian players about when we wanted them back."
Bobat elaborated on RCB’s efforts to ensure overseas players’ participation.
"We also needed to liaise with some of the overseas governing bodies, you know, the ECB, Cricket Australia and obviously more recently, you know, Cricket South Africa and West Indies. Because you need to know what impact it’s going to have on them now that it’s finishing dating. So there was a lot of communicating to do. Andy and I lined up video calls with all of the overseas players. We spoke to each of them, took them through the security detail, took them through the schedule, talked to them about how RCB were going to look after them, which is really important for them to understand because we want them to feel safe and happy here," Bobat stated.
Will Josh Hazlewood be Available for RCB in IPL 2025 Playoffs?
Despite earlier reports suggesting he might not return due to Cricket Australia’s (CA) focus on the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 final, sources now indicate that Hazlewood could rejoin RCB just before the playoffs.
However, for that to happen, he must regain full fitness. RCB’s next match is scheduled against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on May 17, and if they win, they will officially qualify for the playoffs.
As RCB aims to maintain its momentum and inch closer to the playoffs, all eyes remain on Hazlewood’s recovery, with hopes that the Aussie will return to spearhead their bowling attack in the knockout stage of IPL 2025.
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