Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) head coach Andy Flower has dropped a massive update on the star fast bowler Josh Hazlewood‘s availability ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 opening match.

Andy Flower said that the veteran Aussie pacer Josh Hazlewood won’t be available for the tournament opener against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Saturday, March 28.

Josh Hazlewood won’t be ready for tomorrow – RCB head coach Andy Flower

Josh Hazlewood has been out of competitive cricket action for a long time now. He missed the Ashes series because of hamstring and Achilles issues and is yet to achieve fitness for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026.

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Speaking to the reporters, Andy Flower said, “Hazlewood won’t be ready for tomorrow. But we are monitoring his fitness.”

While talking about the legendary batter Virat Kohli, Andy Flower said that he is super fit and ready to fire.

“Kohli is looking super fit, the way he is timing in practice, he is at the top of his game.”

In Rajat’s first year, he has led the team to a title – Andy Flower

The RCB head coach also lavished rich praise on the skipper Rajat Patidar for maintaining his cool under pressure and gave a special shoutout to the wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma. He stated:

“In Rajat’s first year, he has led the team to a title. He had a bit of experience as the captain of MP. Very likable man, stays calm, the bowlers like it. Jitesh is very energetic.”

The Impact Player rule has been a debatable topic with several players raising their voices against it. However, Andy Flower seems to be on a different page. He elaborated:

“Impact sub has been a good innovation. It is interesting for the audience. Tactically, it is a good addition. One of the things of cricket is about selection. When you select a single-skilled player, it could affect the balance. Impact sub hides such things.”

Pat Cummins’ fitness is good – Daniel Vettori

Just like Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins has been troubled a lot by fitness issues and is currently out of action. He is set to miss the initial half of the Indian Premier League.

Providing an update on the SRH skipper, Daniel Vettori said that his fitness is good at the moment and he is slowly building the bowling load. He elaborated:

“Cummins’ fitness is good. It is about building bowling loads. Over the next 10/15 days, hopefully we will get a timeline.”

“We are an aggressive team, we bat deep. The challenge for us is to assess the conditons on tricky wickets.”

Also Read: Kamran Akmal trolls Pakistan Super League after Hyderabad Kingsmen jersey turns ball pink

Travel has a tendency to alter your perspective on large things: landscapes, cultures, history. Yet, more often than not, it is small, mundane things that stay with you. Things you did not plan for, did not read about in depth, but things you find yourself noticing over and over. They seep into your daily life when you are on the road, and before you know it, they start to seem…logical. As if they should be a part of every place.This was evident in Nick and Raychel’s stay in India. The Vancouver-based couple, who are documenting their journey on Instagram, did not simply move from one place to another. They noticed how things worked in daily life, how people ate, how they traveled, how they cleaned up after themselves, and even how they finished a meal. And somewhere down the line, they started noticing things that, in their words, “just make sense.”

Fennel seeds or saunf

Fennel seeds – the perfect end to a meal

It was often offered at the end of a meal. Many restaurants, just as they were about to leave, would have a small dish of fennel seeds mixed with sugar on the table. Initially, they might have thought it was just a nice touch, something to look at, perhaps even optional. But after a few attempts at eating it, they realized it wasn’t just about the flavor. It was refreshing, good for digestion, and finished the meal in a nice way.

Train travel in India

Trains – They take you everywhere

Traveling through the country also made them realize the interconnectedness of things. India’s railway system was not only vast; it had also become an integral part of the people’s lives. Whether it was a short trip between two towns or a longer trip between two or more states, trains seemed to go anywhere. For Nick and Raychel, this would be a change of pace from what they were accustomed to back home. Instead of constantly planning flights or long drives, they could rely on trains to get them from one place to another, often while watching the landscape slowly change outside their window. It wasn’t just efficient—it felt accessible.

Indian thali

Trying thalis – Because, why not?

Of course, food is an integral part of their experience, but not in the way they had imagined. Indian thalis with their well-organized selection of food had caught their attention right from the beginning. It seemed like a lot—multiple bowls of different textures, colors, and flavors all in one single dish. But as they began eating the thalis, they saw the structure of the food. Each had its own space and balance with the other foods. They did not have to overthink the food they would choose or whether the meal would be complete or not; it already was.

Hand wash stations – Yes

Some observations were even more immediate. In many restaurants, especially casual ones, they saw the presence of hand-washing stations in plain sight. Not in the washroom, but in plain sight, so that one could wash their hands before or after a meal. It was practical, especially in a culture where eating with hands was the norm.

Kulhad chai

Kulhad Chai – Yes

Their tea breaks also got them used to one of the simplest yet most memorable aspects of the experience: clay cups. Chai was not just tea; it was hot tea in small clay cups called kulhads. It was different from the very first sip. There was a flavor to it, a flavor that would not be present in paper or plastic cups. But that was not the most memorable part. Once the tea was done, the cup was not going to be thrown away in a landfill or reused in a manner that would harm the environment. It would go back to the earth it was made of.

Leaf plates

Leaves for plates

Street food, which they had approached with a mix of excitement and caution, had shown itself to possess its own logic. One of the things they had observed was that many of the street food vendors were serving their snacks on plates made of dried leaves. It was something they observed over the course of their travels. It was definitely not something they had seen with labels of being eco-friendly; it was simply something that was a part of the system.

Vegetarian-friendly travel

Even something as simple as reading the menu was made simpler than they had imagined. One of the things they observed while traveling through different places was the way in which vegetarian food were clearly marked on the menu. It was something that had removed any sort of confusion that they might have faced while eating something new. It was something they had not actually been looking for but observed and it made a difference. What connected all these events together was not only how useful they were, but how they fit so neatly into the way life was lived. There was nothing in them that seemed put in place to impress or cater to visitors. They were just processes and behaviors that had built up over time, based on cultural influences, usefulness, and perhaps an attitude towards life.As Nick and Raychel reflected on their journey, it was not just where they went that mattered. It was not just these little interactions they had over and over again. The end of a meal, taking a train, drinking tea, making a quick stop to use a hand-washing service – they were not individually significant. But they come together to create an idea of a place where many things were done in an unassuming way.And it was this, perhaps more than anything else, that they took away.

US president Donald Trump on Friday winkingly referred to the Strait of Hormuz, the critical oil shipping route and a key choke point in the Iran war, as “Strait of Hormuz.”While speaking at the Future Investment Initiative in Miami Trump said, “Iran has to ‘open up the Strait of Trump, I mean, Hormuz,’” Trump said prompting laughter from the audience.He followed it up by saying, “Excuse me. I’m so sorry. Such a terrible mistake,” before adding, “The fake news will say, ‘He accidentally said’, No, there’s no accidents with me, not too many. If there were, we’d have a major story.”The comment comes at a time when the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil transit route, has become central to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The waterway typically handles the movement of nearly 20 million barrels of oil per day, making it one of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints.Iran’s ability to disrupt or block access through the strait has contributed to significant volatility in global energy supplies and prices. The conflict is nearing its second month, even as the United States has claimed to have “obliterated” Iran’s military capabilities.Earlier in the week, Trump suggested that control of the strait could be jointly managed by “me and the ayatollah” as part of a potential resolution. He has also said that Iran is negotiating with the US and is “begging” to make a deal, though authorities in Tehran have denied any direct talks.Separately, a report by the New York Post, cited by Axios, said Trump is considering the possibility of taking control of the strait and renaming it either after himself or as the “Strait of America.” The idea echoes his earlier attempt to relabel the Gulf of Mexico.The remark is consistent with Trump’s long-standing approach to branding, where he has frequently used his name across business and public ventures. It also mirrors a previous post on Truth Social in October, where he jokingly referred to the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts using his own name.According to a White House announcement in December, the Kennedy Center’s board later voted to rename the institution the “Trump-Kennedy Center.”