After RCB slumped to their third straight home loss in the IPL 2025 season, suffering a five-wicket defeat against Punjab Kings in rain rain-shortened 14-over contest at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Bengaluru suffered defeats against Gujarat Titans and Delhi Capitals, raising questions about the team’s ability to capitalise on home advantage.
Pacer Josh Hazlewood has highlighted the surface’s unpredictable bounce and the batter’s failure to implement lessons from prior games.
“Yeah, I think it’s not a typical Chinnaswamy wicket. Obviously, the bounce has always been there, but in past years, it’s probably been more consistent,” said Josh Hazlewood.
He admitted the team’s learning has not been executed effectively but expressed confidence in a turnaround.
“Yeah, it’s obviously three (defeats) in a row now at home. It’s just we’ve probably been a bit slow on the learnings from the first two games and didn’t put that into practice as well as we could have, probably in those first probably six to eight overs, obviously, with the score the way it was,” said Hazlewood.
“We’ll dive into this game, go through details with a fine-tooth comb, and come up with ideas to improve. The bowling has gotten better, but we need to accelerate progress,” Josh Hazlewood said on RCB’s progress at bounce backs.
The Australian pacer urged batters to balance aggression with situational awareness. “Pulling back a touch, giving yourself time, and letting top-order batters anchor the innings could be key. If our top five-six bat through 20 overs, it’ll make a difference,” he added.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru has now slipped to fourth place in the IPL 2025 Points table and has 8 points to their name. RCB will play their next game against Punjab Kings on April 20 at Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium.
