Cricket-Hazlewood repays Bengaluru's faith with solid display in opening IPL win

Cricket - Indian Premier League - IPL - Kolkata Knight Riders v Royal Challengers Bengaluru - Eden Gardens, Kolkata, India - March 22, 2025 Royal Challengers Bengaluru's Josh Hazlewood celebrates with teammates after taking the wicket of Kolkata Knight Riders' Quinton de Kock REUTERS/Abhijit Addya

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Josh Hazlewood showed exactly why Royal Challengers Bengaluru splashed the cash for his services as the refreshed Australian seamer produced suffocating spells to help his team secure an opening victory in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Following stints in 2022 and 2023, Hazlewood rejoined the Bengaluru side after being bought for 125 million Indian rupees ($1.45 million) at the auction in Jeddah in November to become the most expensive Australian player this season.