[CRK]
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) fast bowler Josh Hazlewood has candidly revealed that his eagerness to rush back into competitive cricket after a series of injuries actually prolonged his absence. At 35, the Australian veteran stresses the importance of respecting the body’s recovery timeline, especially for players in their thirties.
Why the rush back went wrong
Hazlewood’s injury saga began in November of the previous year when a hamstring strain forced him out of a Sheffield Shield match. The rehab process took an unexpected turn: an Achilles‑tendon issue emerged, followed by a torn calf. The cumulative setbacks meant he missed not only the Ashes but also the T20 World Cup, and the opening weeks of IPL 2026.
“Any professional athlete who’s been injured knows what it takes to get back. Some are harder than others. This time around, it was obviously quite a long time out of the game,” Hazlewood told reporters ahead of RCB’s home game against Delhi Capitals. He added that his desire to be fit for the fourth or fifth Ashes Test and the World Cup led him to push his body beyond safe limits.
Learning to respect the timeline
Reflecting on the ordeal, Hazlewood said, “You learn something every time you’re injured and it’s probably just about respecting that time frame, that return‑to‑play window.” He admitted that he had added extra training sessions in an attempt to accelerate his recovery, even though he felt the intensity of IPL training was hard to replicate.
“I probably felt four or five days before playing that Rajasthan game that I was ready and probably pushed hard to play against Chennai here, but it was probably a good thing I just kept it and banked a few more sessions,” he explained.
Back on the field – the IPL debut
Hazlewood finally returned to the IPL against the Rajasthan Royals, picking up two wickets while conceding 44 runs. He missed the next match against Mumbai Indians, a decision made in consultation with the team’s medical staff, before delivering a tidy 1 for 20 performance against Lucknow Super Giants at home.
He emphasizes that in T20 cricket, “your volume doesn’t have to be huge at training, it’s just reaching that intensity that the game demands out in the middle.” The bowler’s focus has shifted to ensuring he can sustain that intensity for the full 20‑over spell rather than overloading on sheer workload.
Bowling style: length, pace and the cat‑and‑mouse game
Unlike many T20 specialists who rely heavily on slower variations, Hazlewood trusts his traditional strengths – hitting a hard, consistent length and generating awkward bounce. He has added a subtle “delivery load‑up” to disguise off‑cutters, quickly switching grip to an on‑pace ball.
“I probably don’t have a great slower ball, so it’s just about trying to confuse the batter as best I can, whether that’s showing it and bowling it or showing it and not bowling it. It’s a little bit of cat and mouse out there as it always is with the batsmen,” he said.
His philosophy centres on making life difficult for the batter by keeping the ball low and hard. “Obviously, my strength is hitting the length, hitting it hard, not floating the ball up and making it hard for the batter to hit me off that length. That’s my strength and the batters know that,” Hazlewood added.
Learning from the RCB bowling unit
Hazlewood also praises the diversity of the RCB attack, likening it to a balanced Australian side where each bowler brings a unique skill set. “I think ours is a balanced attack; everyone’s a little bit different. It feels like we’ve got every base covered and I like to learn off the other guys at training as well,” he noted.
‘Pressure in an IPL game is on batters, not bowlers’
Scores of 200+ have become routine in the IPL, with 21 such totals in just 23 completed games this season and a staggering 424 sixes hit so far. While many argue that bowlers are under immense pressure, Hazlewood sees the dynamic differently.
“From a bowler’s point of view, it almost takes the pressure off a little bit because the batsmen are expected to get off to good starts, they’re expected to score big runs at the end, they’re expected to get 230 runs now probably every T20 innings they play,” he explained. “So if you can get a batter two off six balls, the pressure that they’re under in that situation is huge.”
He illustrated how a tight over can cause a batter to “melt” under the weight of expectation, and suggested that modern high‑scoring games have shifted the primary pressure onto the batting side.
“The game’s always changing. It’s a nice challenge to have, I think. But, I feel like there’s probably less pressure on the bowler these days with such big scores, if that sounds right,” Hazlewood concluded.
Looking ahead
With the IPL season rolling on, Hazlewood’s measured approach to fitness and his clear‑cut bowling identity could prove valuable for RCB’s title aspirations. By respecting his body, fine‑tuning his traditional strengths, and staying observant of the batsmen’s cues, he aims to remain a pivotal piece of the franchise’s bowling puzzle well into the latter stages of the tournament.
