Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) important bowling asset Josh Hazlewood is currently suffering from an Achilles injury and is yet to recover. However, the Aussie pacer revealed the date of his return to the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, not disappointing the Bangalore-based team, who have already faced a few setbacks in the form of injured Will Jacks and Rajat Patidar.
Notably, Hazlewood sustained a leg fracture earlier this year and missed the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2023 as well. Talking to ‘The Age’ about his return to IPL 2023, the 32-year-old cricketer revealed that although he will participate in the marquee tournament, he will not be able to play the initial matches for RCB and will join the team on April 14.
“Everything is ticking along according to plan, so I’ll be heading over on the 14th (of April) depending on how the next two weeks go. I probably won’t be quite ready to go right then, but (after) another week in India to touch things up skills wise I should be ready to go hopefully,” said Hazlewood.
Speaking about workload management, the left-arm pacer said it’s easier to make a comeback in the T20 format than ODIs and Tests. Hazlewood also added that his participation in the 16th edition of the IPL would help him prepare for the Ashes.
“You don’t need a lot of workload for T20. It’s more just ticking off those boxes of getting up to speed and pushing back in the run-up. I’m probably only going to need to do one or two sessions at full pace and then I’m probably good to play. T20 is a lot different to Test and even one-day cricket. You only need 20 balls at full pace and that’s pretty close to a game, which is a good thing,” said Hazlewood.
“It’s a niggly one, the Achilles tendon. It’s a slow process but it thrives on a bit of work, and I’d have to be bowling to prepare for the Ashes, so it may as well be in a game of cricket,” he added.
Hazlewood joining the RCB in the third week of April means that the pacer will miss at least seven initial games that the team will play before his arrival. In their first game, the Faf du Plessis-led side will face Mumbai Indians (MI) on April 2.
