This is RCB's penultimate league match.
After the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 restarted, there have been a lot of speculations surrounding the availability of overseas players. For Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), they had a major headache regarding Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood’s return for the remainder of the league. RCB are set to play their penultimate league match against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) tonight. The RCB vs SRH clash was slated to be Bengaluru’s last home match. However, due to incessant rain in the city, the match is moved to the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow.
Hazlewood had also incurred a shoulder niggle which made his participation even more doubtful, especially with Australia set to play South Africa in the World Test Championship (WTC) Final 2025 from June 11.
ALSO READ: IPL 2025 Top Two Qualification Scenarios: Can RCB, GT, PBKS or MI Seal a Top Spot?
The 34-year-old has been clinical for RCB this season and is currently third in the Purple Cap race with 18 wickets from 10 matches. However, as per Australian media reports, Hazlewood has not arrived in India yet.
ALSO READ:
Despite his return being confirmed by Australian media reports from May 16, Josh Hazlewood won’t be available for the RCB vs SRH game. This is because he is currently in Brisbane, where he is completing his rehab, and it will take a couple of days before he can fly to India. His injury is not serious. He is expected to be fit in time for both the IPL playoffs and the WTC final. Given the timeline, it is expected that Josh will join RCB before the playoffs begin on May 29.
Speaking about RCB’s playoff chances, they are currently placed second in the IPL 2025 points table. They have secured eight wins from 12 games and have 17 points after their last washout against KKR.
They have two more games remaining and will need to win at least one to secure a top-two position. After tonight’s match, the Bengaluru outfit will play against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on May 27 at the same venue.
For more updates, follow CricXtasy on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, and YouTube.
