Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) pacer Josh Hazlewood dominated Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) batters with his opening spell on April 15, not letting them set a platform for a big score. Hazlewood’s well-disguised cross-seamers troubled the batters and led to another low score for Nicholas Pooran. LSG skipper Rishabh Pant also got retired hurt as the ball hurt his elbow. The Australian was named ‘Player of the match’ as RCB registered a comprehensive five-wicket win. After the game, Hazlewood said that he likes to keep it simple and focuses on not trying too much as he doesn’t have the skills of someone like Jasprit Bumrah. He credited Bhuvneshwar Kumar for communicating well with the pacers.
“You don’t have to try too much. It’s very simple in planning, but it’s just about execution, and putting the ball in the right areas. Bhuvi summed up the conditions in that first over, and then there were a few field changes here and there. The communication within the bowling group, in particular, especially from Bhuvi, who bowls first up, is a real strength of ours. It’s probably why we did so well in our away games last year,” Hazlewood told JioHotstar after the win.
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“I don’t have the skills of someone like Bumrah or others with slower balls, so you’ve got to make it up on the run. I keep working on a few different things in training all the time and hopefully, bring them in when we need them. In this game, it was more about being accurate, hitting the right length, even using a few cross-seam deliveries and just keeping it simple,” he added.
The 35-year-old has played two games and claimed three wickets in the season so far. He was happy to see RCB chase down the target with ease considering how the wicket was on the slower side.
“We probably struggled a little bit in the first half of last year in home games. So, it's nice to win the toss and have a bowl first. It’s a slightly different wicket than what we’re used to, a little slower, probably a bit up and down. So, it’s quite tough for batting. I thought the way we chased the total down was very good to watch. All our batters are in good form and confident, and to chase the score down pretty quickly on a wicket like that is huge,” said the pacer.
Hazlewood will be seen in action on April 18 when RCB go up against Delhi Capitals at home.