Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) began their title defense with a 6-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the season opener, thanks in part to a scintillating debut from New Zealand’s Jacob Duffy. The Kiwi ended his four overs with 3 crucial wickets of Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma and Nitish Kumar Reddy conceding only 22 runs.
While Chinnaswamy Stadium has already found a new favorite in Duffy, who did more than fill in for the still outstanding Josh HazlewoodRCB captain Rajat Patidar praised the New Zealand pacer for making the most of his opportunity. In the post-match press conference, Patidar emphasized that he and the team management had full faith in Duffy’s T20 bowling credentials.
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“As we all know, he is a T20 specialist,” said Rajat Patidar, the RCB captain, at the post-match press conference. “We have a lot of confidence in him and that’s why we gave him a chance. The way he’s been serving and showing his ability, I think it’s been tremendous.”
HOW DUFFY STEALED THE SHOW IN RCB VS SRH
Duffy, who endured a difficult outing just three weeks before the IPL opener in the T20 World Cup final against India, returning wicketless figures of 0 for 42 in three overs, opted to stick to his strengths.
“I just tried to keep things pretty simple,” Duffy said after picking up Man of the Match for his wild opening spell. “The plan was to use the new ball, especially since it works a bit here in Bengaluru. We talked a lot about lengths and what works on this surface.”
While Duffy’s fiery debut was the story of the dayRCB’s bowling show against SRH also brings some credit to Hazlewood himself. Duffy himself acknowledged the figure of the Australian speed ace, who is currently working his way back to full fitness after dealing with a hamstring injury and Achilles problems that ruled him out of the domestic Ashes and the recent T20 World Cup.
“Josh Hazlewood had a really good season here last year so it was about building on what he did and trying to repeat it in my own way,” Duffy said.
Although not available for selection, Hazlewood still played a key role behind the scenes after linking up with the squad ahead of kick-off.
“I think Hazlewood spent a lot of time with the fast bowlers in the last training session before the game and his contributions definitely helped them (in their performance against SRH),” Patidar added in his press conference.
Duffy’s impressive spell, which included the key wickets of Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma and Nitish Kumar Reddy, ensured that SRH never fully recovered from the early blows. His ability to hit hard lengths, extract bounce and adapt quickly after being put under pressure stood out, giving RCB not just a short-term replacement but a real bowling option even if Hazlewood returns.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
March 29, 2026 12:24 PM IST
