Suyash Sharma showed guts to dismiss Russell: Hazlewood praises courageous RCB bowler-OxBig News Network

Josh Hazlewood heaped praise on leg-spinner Suyash Sharma for taking the crucial wicket of Andre Russell at a stage when Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) could have taken the match away from the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the IPL 2025 opener.

The 21-year-old Suyash went for 47 runs in his quota of four overs, but his timely wicket of Russell meant that RCB restricted KKR to a below-par score of 174 for eight, when the Knights were looking good to go past the 200-run mark.

IPL 2025 Coverage | IPL Points Table | IPL Schedule

Suyash bowled a googly outside the off-stump, inducing Russell to go for a big shot. Russell, however, missed the ball completely and saw his stumps getting rattled. Hazlewood said that had Suyash not got that wicket, KKR would have given RCB a daunting target to chase down.

“I really think he’ll continue to improve with every game he plays this season. From what I’ve seen, I haven’t seen much of Suyash, but even tonight, he showed a lot of guts bowling that ball to Dre Russ at the end. That was a big wicket,” Hazlewood said in the post-match press conference.

“The last three overs could have gone for 30+ if he wasn’t in, so it took courage to bowl that ball and take the wicket. I believe he’s courageous and will keep learning as we go along. He has great skill, and I’m excited to see how his game develops over the next few games,” Hazlewood added.

In the run-chase, RCB didn’t give KKR much breathing space as they tracked down the target with 22 balls to spare and won by seven wickets. The Challengers will be looking to carry their momentum when they face Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on March 28 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.