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‘I think all the Bengaluru should be smiling’: Dinesh Karthik reflects on Josh Hazlewood joining RCB
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have bolstered their bowling attack with the acquisition of Australian seamer Josh Hazlewood for Rs 12.50 crore at the Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction in Jeddah on Sunday.
This marks a much-anticipated return for Hazlewood, who was previously a pivotal figure in RCB's bowling unit, playing a crucial role in their qualification during his earlier stint.
RCB batting coach and mentor Dinesh Karthik expressed excitement over Hazlewood's return, calling him a "major and integral part" of the team's success.
"Everybody from RCB and all the fans have all said let's go for Josh Hazlewood and here we have him. Josh Hazlewood, it was all about who can we get and we got Josh Hazlewood. I think all the Bengaluru should be smiling at that option because we have seen what he can do in the year that he came, we qualified and he was such a major and integral part of that attack," Karthik was quoted in a statement.
"He's home where he belongs. Cannot wait to see him set the pitch ablaze at Chinnaswamy," RCB wrote on X.
Hazlewood, the pacer with 67 wickets for Australia in 52 T20s and 136 scalps in 107 T20s, was a part of RCB's roster from 2022-23, playing 15 matches and taking 23 wickets, out of which 20 came in 2022 season. He also represented Chennai Super Kings (CSK) from 2020-21, taking 12 wickets in 12 matches and winning the 2021 season with them.
Earlier, the Bengaluru-based franchise retained Virat Kohli along with Rajat Patidar, and Yash Dayal ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction to be held this year.