Hazlewood shines as RCB edge Royals in home thriller
Australian fast bowler Josh Hazlewood delivered a match-winning performance with figures of 4-33 as Royal Challengers Bengaluru clinched an 11-run victory at home over Rajasthan Royals in a high-scoring IPL clash on Thursday.
Set a stiff target of 206, the Royals looked well on course before Hazlewood turned the game around in the penultimate over. With Rajasthan needing 17 off 9 balls, he dismissed the well-set Dhruv Jurel for 47 (34), then knocked over Jofra Archer next ball to leave the visitors needing a near-miracle in the final over.
Earlier, Virat Kohli led RCB’s charge with a fluent 42-ball 70 after Rajasthan opted to field first. Opening alongside Phil Salt, the pair powered to 59-0 in the powerplay before Salt fell for 26. Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal (50 off 27) stitched a crucial 95-run stand to anchor the innings.
The home side stumbled slightly after both set batters fell in quick succession, but brisk cameos from Tim David (23) and Jitesh Sharma (20) lifted Bengaluru to a competitive 205-5.
Rajasthan’s chase started brightly, with Yashasvi Jaiswal smashing 49 off just 19 balls. However, Hazlewood struck at a vital moment to remove him, and Krunal Pandya chipped in with two key middle-order scalps — Nitish Rana (28) and skipper Riyan Parag (22) — as the Royals began to stutter.
Despite being in control at the halfway stage, Rajasthan’s lower order couldn’t finish the job, falling short in the final stretch.
“We were in the driving seat,” admitted Parag after the match. “But we let it slip.”
Hazlewood, named Player of the Match, said he stuck to his plans in the death overs. “Hard lengths were hard to hit, so I was mixing that up with yorkers, change of pace,” he said.
The result lifts RCB further up the table as they continue their late-season push, while Rajasthan are left to rue another close loss in a tightly contested campaign.
(Source: AFP)
