He will have been cancer-free for three years in a couple of days.
That really puts cricket into perspective.
The 29-year-old left-armer really is just happy to be out on the park.
And even happier after he nabbed five for 36 to seal a 65-run win for the Otago Volts against Central Districts at the University Oval yesterday.
The Volts posted what seemed like a below-par tally of 213 for nine.
But you never know in cricket.
The ball was turning nicely from one end. Jacob Duffy put his "godly wrist" into action and got the ball to swing.
And Hazeldine yorked and bounced his way to his maiden five-wicket bag.
"I think it was a lot tougher wicket than we thought initially," he said.
"We thought 250 [was par] but the boys bowled so well that it was more than enough in the end."
He was thrilled with five-wicket haul. But he was just as happy for the team, who have had a tough summer.
The win has kept the Volts in the hunt for the playoffs.
While the result was perfect, the performance was not.
Otago were gifted a pretty decent start thanks, in no small part, to Bevan Small, who was struggling to keep the ball inside the wide lines.
But they threw away that advantage.
Jacob Cumming (10) chipped a delivery to short mid-on where Ray Toole took the simplest of catches.
Fellow opener Luke Georgeson’s dismissal for 26 was virtually identical.
Blair Tickner could not believe his luck.
The Stags continued to put in a mixed bowling performance, though.
A typical over might include a wide or two, a play and miss, an edge, a boundary — the whole gamut.
Dale Phillips and Dean Foxcroft stayed on the rollercoaster, putting on 50 from 70 balls.
But Phillips, who had looked in good touch, perished for 21.
Left-arm spinner Jayden Lennox turned the ball past his defence, and then Foxcroft followed him back to the sheds when he tried to sweep Ajaz Patel was was trapped lbw for 25.
The Volts were forced into a period of consolidation.
Thorn Parkes danced down the wicket and clobbered a six off Jack Boyle. But otherwise Parkes and Llew Johnson (23) , who put on 57 for the fifth wicket, took low-risk options and the boundaries dried up.
Patel (one for 28) and Lennox (two for 28) dictated terms on a helpful surface which turned plenty.
Parkes was never really able to find his timing, but added a valuable 53 not out to steer the Volts past 200.
Toole bowled well to the middle order and was rewarded with three for 30 for Central Districts.
Stags opener Curtis Heaphy was put down on nine. He got a think edge which flew to the third-man boundary.
Hazeldine grassed that chance, but he got his man next over with a deadly yorker which clattered into the off stump.
The drinks break ushered in another couple of wickets, including the dangerous Dane Cleaver for five.
And when Brad Schmulian (28) sliced the ball straight up in the air for keeper Max Chu to comfortably get under, all the momentum shifted to the fielding side.
The Stags had a long tail and the partnership between Josh Clarkson and Will Clark was the final bulwark, really.
Duffy bulldozed through it.
He nipped a delivery back to bowled Clark for one and trapped Clarkson lbw for 10.
In between those wickets, Phillips grabbed an utterly sensational catch to removed Small. He dived forward and scooped the ball one-handed.
Hazeldine did the rest. He was too quick for the tail.
In the other two matches, Canterbury beat Auckland by 119 runs at Eden Park Outer Oval, and Wellington beat Northern Districts by 45 runs at the Basin Reserve.
OTAGO
L Georgeson c Toole b Tickner 26
J Cumming c Toole b Tickner 10
D Foxcroft lbw Patel 25
D Phillips b Lennox 21
T Parkes not out 53
L Johnson c Cleaver b Toole 23
M Chu c Lennox b Toole 4
B Lockrose c Patel b Tickner 4
T Muller c Cleaver b Toole 1
A Hazeldine c Patel b Lennox 11
J Duffy not out 11
Extras (5lb, 18w, 1nb) 24
Total (9 wkts, 50 overs) 213
Fall: 1-44, 2-45, 3-95, 4-97, 5-154, 6-160,
7-175, 8-180, 9-198.
Bowling: B Small 5-0-44-0 (6 wides), B
Tickner 10-1-38-3 (2w), R Toole 10-1-30-3 (1w),
J Clarkson 4-0-29-0 (4w), J Lennox 10-1-28-2,
A Patel 10-0-28-1 (3w), J Boyle
1-0-11-0 (1nb).
CENTRAL DISTRICTS
C Heaphy b Hazeldine 10
J Boyle b Lockrose 25
B Schmulian c Chu b Lockrose 28
D Cleaver c Chu b Hazeldine 5
J Clarkson lbw Duffy 10
W Clark b Duffy 1
B Small c Phillips b Lockrose 1
A Patel c Cumming b Hazeldine 18
B Tickner c Johnson b Hazeldine 23
J Lennox b Hazeldine 0
R Toole not out 1
Extras (6b, 6lb, 14w) 26
Total (all out, 37.5 overs) 148
Fall: 1-26, 2-65, 3-72, 4-90, 5-98, 6-103,
7-109, 8-139, 9-139. 10-148.
Bowling: J Duffy 8-0-26-2 (1w), A Hazeldine
9.5-1-36-5 (6w), T Muller 6-0-29-0 (3w), L
Georgeson 3-0-15-0, B Lockrose 9-2-30-3, D
Foxcroft 2-2-0-0.
Result: Otago won by 65 runs.
