As he prepares to rejoin Australia’s lineup for the World Test Championship final against South Africa, Josh Hazlewood believes he is bowling better than ever.
Hazlewood is hoping to fill one of the few voids on his resume at Lord’s after missing the 2023 WTC final against India while recuperating from an injury. He hasn’t played in the Test team since suffering a calf injury against India in Brisbane, which followed a side strain earlier in the series.
After a stellar IPL season with champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), in which he claimed 22 wickets, Hazlewood and Josh Inglis arrived in the UK late. He eased back into bowling following the journey from India on Saturday, sending down about five overs at a modest pace during Australia’s optional training session in Beckenham. He was scheduled to work out more thoroughly on Sunday at Lord’s, where he will operate at nearly full pace.
Hazlewood is anticipated to keep Scott Boland out of the starting lineup for the final, barring any setbacks.
Since rejoining the team during the 2023 Ashes after injuries had restricted him to just four appearances in the previous two years, Hazlewood has claimed 57 wickets at 19.68 in his last 13 Test matches.
“I was obviously quite close last time [in 2023],” revealed Hazlewood. “I wasn’t completely up to par because I had a more interrupted IPL before that and a few little problems in between, but I feel substantially better now.
“And I believe that in whatever format, I have a lot of skill to fall back on because my results over the past two years have been fairly strong. It simply depends on the body holding up, which it has in recent months, but I still feel like I’m bowling perhaps at my greatest level in my career.”
Despite playing 10 straight Test matches between mid-2023 and late 2024, Hazlewood has spent a lot of time behind the scenes attempting to determine whether his numerous injuries in recent years have a common theme, with an emphasis on the strains of bowling back-to-back days in shortened Test series.
“I think the intensity is probably a big one for me to tick that box,” he stated. “We’re definitely adapting training to sort of get those back-to-back days in, get a big day, followed by another bowling session the day after and things like that, just to try and try and get our head around it and put ourselves in the best possible position we can be.”
Hazlewood stated that the IPL’s later-than-expected conclusion had not affected the number of full bowling sessions he would be able to have with the red ball, and he was certain that he would have enough time to prepare before the final.
It was a cold, cloudy day with beanies everywhere. “I ticked over some good overs just before the final in Ahmedabad, in different weather than this,” he added. “The session was really difficult. Additionally, if you truly want to, you will likely complete nearly seven or eight overs during warm-ups before every IPL match. The game was one of the occasions when I bowled back-to-back days, once more with great intensity.
Hazlewood’s main goal in England will be to make sure he aims a longer length, which is frequently required, and uses the stumps more.
“In the IPL games, I was probably hitting around that seven-to nine-meters in the powerplay, and not really threatening the stumps as much as you want to in Test cricket, in particular here in England,” he stated. “So, it’ll just be about pushing that length and touch fuller and still getting that zip through the keeper.”
It should come as no surprise that Hazlewood strongly supports the all-rounder position in Australia’s lineup, which has been occupied by Cameron Green, Mitchell Marsh, and most recently, Beau Webster, since 2020–21. Although head coach Andrew McDonald previously left the door open for not needing Webster’s overs in the final and Green won’t be eligible to bowl until the Ashes later this year, Hazlewood felt certain of the advantages the extra resource offers.
His words were, “I think it’s huge,” “I recall how cruel it was when we didn’t have one. The work was difficult. I think you’re bowling all the time, virtually following the next man at the other end, then switching ends, and then we all rotate with Gazza [Nathan Lyon] at one end.
In order to be fresher on the second new ball, the following day, or later in the series, you only need to have that bowler, [and] to be honest, Travis [Head] and Marnus [Labuschagne], for a few overs here and there. If you’re bowling all the time without that all-rounder, it just kind of snowballs.”
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