The most satisfying aspect of Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s mini-streak in IPL 2026 is their pacers’ flawless performance, which has upended the record book to win three straight home games.
At the Chinnaswamy, the RCB bowlers easily defeated a wide range of opponents, including Sunrisers Hyderabad, Chennai Super Kings, and Lucknow Super Giants.
On the other hand, RCB’s three home losses during the 2025 Indian Premier League were a little setback to an otherwise incredible run to their first title.
Unlike the Mumbai Indians or CSK, whose home fields are typically their strongholds, RCB had a dismal record of 46 losses and 45 victories from 96 games before to the start of this season.
On March 28, Jacob Duffy broke through SRH’s top order with a three-wicket haul, providing the first indication of a comeback.
Duffy, who had ranked first among bowlers in the ICC T20 rankings in 2025, was a backup plan for Josh Hazlewood’s recovery.
“He’s got pace, he’s got bounce, also he moves sideways. Duffy’s height and high delivery point add to the arsenal he brings to the mix. It can be a key factor,” PTI had quoted RCB head coach Andy Flower as saying after signing Duffy.
He outsmarted Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, and Nitish Kumar Reddy, demonstrating all those traits. In a sense, Duffy was simply hitting the hard lengths in keeping with Hazlewood’s philosophy.
“I am just keeping the big man’s seat warm! Josh had a really good season here last year, so it was about building on what he did well and trying to replicate that in my own way. I had a basic template coming into that tournament,” Duffy had said after the match against Hyderabad.
But when Hazlewood returned, Duffy was forced to give up the seat, and the Australian had an instant impact.
With those hard balls and bounce from the three-quarter length, the muscular quick intimidated the top order of the Lucknow Super Giants. He even struck Rishabh Pant in the left elbow, limiting his ability to play. After a fantastic 4-0-20-1 spell, it was scarcely unexpected to see him win man of the match.
On Wednesday night, Hazlewood pitched an incredible 23 deliveries on his unique length, putting the batters in a tight spot even though they were aware of what he was doing.
“I don’t have the skills of a Bumrah or others with slower balls. I keep working on a few different things in training all the time and, hopefully, bring them in when we need them. In this game (vs LSG), it was more about being accurate, hitting the right length, even using a few cross-seam deliveries and just keeping it simple,” PTI quoted Hazlewood telling JioStar.
Jitesh Sharma, the vice-captain of the RCB, emphasized that point.
“I think he is looking more sharp. His body has got rest after that (injury break). So, he has become quicker, fitter and he is very confident about his body now. It’s showing in his bowling,” said Jitesh in the post-match press conference.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who matched Hazlewood with a three-wicket haul, is another player who has kept things straightforward. In contrast to his teammate, Bhuvneshwar used a variety of slower bouncers, yorkers, and knuckle balls to control LSG batsmen.
“Bhuvi summed up the conditions in the first over, and then there were a few field changes. The communication within the bowling group, in particular, especially from Bhuvi, who bowls first up, is a real strength of ours,” said Hazlewood.
These are seasoned professionals that have won numerous battles in their professions. However, RCB would also be thrilled to see someone like Rasikh Salam take four wickets and silence the LSG batsmen in the last overs.
Between the 16th and 20th overs, the 26-year-old took three wickets with a string of full-length deliveries. To a large degree, it has assisted RCB in overcoming the absence of controversial pacer Yash Dayal, who was outstanding for them in 2025.
Thus, the “home venue” curse has been lifted thanks to the combined efforts of the regular and backup pacers. The opponents will be aware that RCB is now a formidable team across various venues in India and that they have little chance of defeating them at home.
