Ahead Of PBKS vs RCB Clash In IPL 2025 Qualifier 1, Tom Moody Hopeful Royal Challengers Bengaluru To Play Both Josh Hazlewood and Nuwan Thusara

PBKS Vs RCB IPL 2025 Qualifier 1: Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will lock horns against Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur,  on Thursday, May 29th.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru finished the league matches with great spirit, clinching nine wins and conceding four defeats. RCB finished in the second spot on the IPL 2025 standings with 19 points and a net run rate of +0.301. RCB sealed four wins and conceded just one defeat in their previous five matches.

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On the other hand, Punjab Kings finished the league matches at the top of the IPL 2025 standings with 19 points and a net run rate of +0.372. The Punjab-based franchise sealed nine wins and conceded four defeats after playing 14 matches in the league.

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Ahead of the game, the Royal Challengers will be in a dilemma whether to play Josh Hazlewood or Nuwan Thusara in the IPL 2025 Qualifier 1 against the Punjab Kings.

Previously, there had been reports that Hazlewood would be missing the remainder of IPL 2025 matches due to the upcoming World Test Championship (WTC) Final between South Africa and Australia. However, he had missed RCB's crucial fixture against Chennai Super Kings due to a shoulder niggle. However, the one-week gap due to the suspension of the IPL 2025 helped the Aussie pacer recover.

Ahead of RCB's clash against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Josh Hazlewood joined the Bengaluru squad, but he was not added to the Playing Eleven.

At a time when the 34-year-old was out of the Playing Eleven, Sri Lankan pacer Nuwan Thushara displayed a decent performance, picking up one wicket after playing one match in the cash-rich tournament at an economy rate of 6.50.

Tom Moody Hopeful Josh Hazlewood, Nuwan Thusara To Play For RCB Against PBKS

While speaking to ESPNcricinfo, former Australian cricketer Tom Moody hailed Thushara for being 'brilliant' during RCB's clash against LSG.

"There will definitely be a discussion — no doubt about that. Thusara was brilliant in the last game, and of course, we know what Hazlewood brings to the table and what his record stands for. So, you can almost guarantee that he’s coming into the side," Tom Moody said.

He added that RCB can play both Hazlewood and Thusara, and might leave out Romario Shepherd from the Playing Eleven.

"The question is whether they opt for both those overseas players and maybe look at someone like Romario Shepherd sitting out. That could allow them to play another Indian batter — not necessarily a top-order one — or possibly have someone like Suyash (Kumar) make way," he added.

Josh Hazlewood's Stats In IPL 2025

In the IPL 2025, Josh Hazlewood displayed a stunning performance. He has picked up 18 wickets from 10 matches at an economy rate of 8.44.