Not many know that just two days before the 2026 IPL opener, Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s Jacob Duffy had won a very prestigious award in New Zealand Cricket (NZC). Actually, three in all.
If most of us had known that in India, we wouldn’t have been that surprised by his match-winning performance against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday night. In the blink of an eye, Duffy had removed the most dangerous opening pair in world cricket today, yes, that of Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head.
Nitish Kumar Reddy, who proved to be a thorn in Australia’s flesh during the 2024-25 Test series in Down Under, was his next victim to set the tourists on a path where they ended up getting fewer runs at the end despite a remarkable comeback. Since RCB chased down 202 in the 16th over, one can imagine that if Duffy had not done so, they would have been pursuing a much bigger target.
Anyway, let’s come back to the award that Duffy received a few days ago. At the annual awards by the NZC, Duffy was given the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal. The honour is given to the country’s top male cricketer. He had done very well across formats. He took 25 wickets in Tests at an average of 16, including three five-fors in four games. The pacer was also given the ANZ Test-Player-of-the-Year award as well as the Winsor Cup for men’s first-class bowling. A rare feat by all means.
“Jacob’s durability, consistency, and ability to take wickets in pressure moments made him the most complete bowling performer of the season,” said Sir Richard Hadlee.
Excellent hiring, one has to say!
So, it’s amply clear that the RCB have hired a peach of a bowler for the 2026 campaign. And what a comeback for Duffy, who had been taken to the cleaners in the T20 World Cup final against India earlier this month. That was a terrible night for him as he conceded 42 runs in just three overs.
After he turned in figures of 3/22 for his Man-of-the-Match award on Saturday, RCB captain Rajat Patidar praised the 31-year-old for his spellbinding performance. “Duffy was playing his first game, and the way he played and the wickets he took were the turning point,” he said.
Meanwhile, Duffy enthused: “Awesome, hell of a way to start the campaign. Great win. I am just keeping the big fellow’s seat warm [referring to Josh Hazlewood, who couldn’t play as he was still recovering from his injuries]. I just wanted to bowl the hard lengths, just keep the ball there.”
