New Delhi: After a series of speculations and reports, Josh Hazlewood has finally returned to India to rejoin the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) squad for the remainder of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. Hazlewood’s addition comes just ahead of the playoffs stage, for which RCB was in dire need of the Aussie speedster to help them win their maiden IPL trophy.
Although RCB might get him into action in their last league-phase game, which is on May 27 but as things stand, Hazlewood is now available for the RCB side going forward, after sitting out for a while with a shoulder injury. The team announced his arrival in style, at first with a teasing social media post which had the picture of his Cricket Australia kit bags and captioned it “Lost and Found.”
Lost and Found 🤔 pic.twitter.com/jthyWfoC8o
— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) May 24, 2025
Hazlewood has been RCB’s highest wicket-taker this season, claiming 18 wickets despite having played just 10 games. He last featured for the team on April 27 and returned to Australia when the IPL was temporarily suspended following cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan. There were reports of him coming back a couple of days ago, after a period of rehab at home.
He was training in Brisbane as part of Australia’s preparations for the World Test Championship (WTC) final against South Africa, and emerged from those sessions quite good to return for RCB. Only on Sunday morning, the team made the news of Hazlewood’s return official, posting a welcoming picture of him with the caption, “He’s here.”
He’s here
ಬಂದ್ಬಿಟ್ಟ
వచ్చేసాడు
வந்துட்டான்
वो आगया
വന്നിരിക്കുന്നുWelcome back, Josh Reginald Hazlewood! 🫡❤🔥 pic.twitter.com/pttA5DX3N8
— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) May 25, 2025
Hazlewood’s impact in playoffs
RCB is already in the playoffs but suffered a setback when they lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Friday, which has dented their chances of finishing in the top two in the IPL 2025 points table. Although the chances are not finished, Hazlewood’s addition might boost them for this. The top two spots guarantee two shots at reaching the final, and the Aussie’s return is timely for the team in that case.
Despite getting long breaks in matches, Hazlewood remains the fourth-highest wicket-taker in IPL 2025, his 18 wickets coming at an average of 17.27 and an economy rate of 8.44. When Hazlewood flew home, Lungi Ngidi was roped in as his replacement, but was without anywhere near the same success. He won’t be in the playoffs for RCB as he returned home for national duties.
Hazlwood had returned to action with the IPL 2025, after going through the home summer dealing with his calf injury and a side problem that followed. He missed a few parts of the India Test series in December last year and was subsequently ruled out of the Sri Lanka tour and the Champions Trophy 2025 as well. He is now expected to return for Australia in the WTC final that is scheduled next month.
Josh Hazlewood has joined back the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) squad to bolster them for their IPL 2025 title quest and will be crucial in the team’s playoffs routine. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
