The story of Bhuvi, IPL’s ultimate workhorse, and how his quiet mastery fuels RCB’s dream run

It did not surprise anyone when the reigning champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) became the first side to qualify for the knock stage of current edition of Indian Premier League (IPL). The side has been on a roll this season, playing without the pressure of being bogged down by the tag of being “chokers” who invariably fell by the wayside in their pursuit of the title.

The victory last year not only helped to remove the stigma attached for not winning the championship but has also allowed the side to play with a relaxed air, exhibiting the confidence of a true champion. Irrespective of what happens in the play offs where luck plays as big a factor as the skillsets and overall strength of the side, one can state with certainty that, on current form and performance, no side deserves to win the trophy more than RCB.

There are many factors that have helped RCB to elevate their performance levels this season. The batsmen led by Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal and Phil Slat have been in great form, making mincemeat of any target set for them. The all rounders Krunal Pandya and Romario Shepherd have contributed handsomely, while skipper Rajat Patidar has led the side displaying considerable shrewdness and maturity. But the real reason for their success has been their well oiled bowling machinery and here the standout performance has come from the veteran warhorse Bhuvaneswar Kumar, who has led the attack with support from Josh Hazlewood and Rasikh Salam and the all rounders.

One of the news reports that appeared in the first week of the current edition of IPL, but did not garner much attention, was the one about Bhuvaneswar becoming the second bowler in the history of IPL to reach the landmark of 200 wickets. He achieved this distinction in the game against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on April 5 when he dismissed Ayush Mhatre. The only other bowler to have taken more than 200 wickets in this championship is leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. Thus Bhuvaneswar became the first fast bowler to achieve this milestone in IPL. With a tally of 24 wickets till date, he is also in the reckoning for winning the Purple Cap, which is claimed by the bowler picking up the highest number of wickets in a season in IPL.

It is surprising that despite being such a successful bowler in IPL, Bhuvaneswar had a rather colourless career in international cricket. He came through the ranks of domestic first class circuit, playing for Uttar Pradesh in Ranji Trophy where he created history by becoming the first bowler to dismiss Sachin Tendulkar for a “duck” in first class cricket. This took place in the finals of the premier national championship in 2009, when he partnered Praveen Kumar and RP Singh to form a top drawer pace bowling combination for his state. In December 2012, he made his debut in international white ball cricket, against Pakistan in both One day Internationals and the T20 version. He followed this by making his entry into the world of test cricket in January 2013 against Australia at Chennai.

Though Bhuvaneswar formed a good partnership with Jasprit Bumrah, his career in tests was rather limited, having played in only 21 matches. He took 63 wickets in these games, at an average of 26.09 and strike rate of picking up a wicket in 53.1 balls. This does not compare poorly with the returns of Mohamed Siraj (139 wickets in 45 tests with a strike rate of 50.4) or Mohammed Shami (229 wickets in 64 tests with a strike rate of 50.2) in terms of the no: of wickets and strike rate. Bhuvaneswar was slightly unfortunate as 10 of these matches were played in India, where conditions did not favour seam bowlers. He was successful in England where he picked up 19 wickets in the 5 tests he played there. He played his last test against South Africa at Johannesburg in 2018.

Bhuvaneswar was more successful in white ball cricket, where his disciplined bowling approach, with focus on line and length brought better returns. He played in 121 ODI’s and 87 T20 Internationals and is one of the few bowlers to have two five wicket hauls in an innings in the shortest version of the game in international cricket. He has not played white ball cricket for the country since 2022.

It was at IPL that Bhuvaneswar found the sweet spot of success more frequently and consistently. A look at his career at IPL shows that after an initial stint with Pune Warriors from 2010 to 2013, he stayed with Sun Risers Hyderabad (SRH) for 11 straight seasons. He was the Purple Cap winner when SRH lifted the title in 2016 with 23 wickets. He performed even better during the next season when he retained the Purple cap with 26 scalps to his credit. It is not surprising that Bhuvaneswar’s arrival in the RCB camp from the 2025 season onwards coincided with a sharp spike in the fortunes of this side. His presence contributed substantially towards RCB’s title winning campaign last season, when he grabbed 17 wickets.

Bhuvaneswar has been the proverbial workhorse in IPL, having bowled more than 50 overs in 10 out of the 16 seasons that he has played in this championship. He is the only bowler to do so in this championship. It is also remarkable that he has bowled more than 85% of the overs either during power play, when the restriction on placement of fielders is designed to favour the batsmen or at the death (between overs 17 to 20), a period of high pressure for the bowlers. In comparison, other successful fast bowlers in IPL like Jasprit Bumrah (187 wickets) and Lasith Malinga (170 wickets) have bowled only around 70% of their overs during these phases of the game.

The forte of this unassuming cricketer are his unerring accuracy and exemplary work ethic. He works very hard and maintains high levels of consistency as a bowler. His ability to swing the ball both ways and generate late movement makes him a dangerous customer in conditions that favour seam bowlers. He showed this ability even during the current edition of IPL, when he sliced through the top half of the batting line up of Delhi Capitals (DC) with a display of superb seam bowling to pick up 3 wickets for 5 runs off 3 overs. This was a superb display of controlled seam bowling on a surface that offered a small help to the bowlers, the likes of which are seldom seen in T20 cricket.

The outstanding performance of Bhuvaneswar Kumar during this reason has created some momentum for his inclusion in the national side. If he is fit to bowl more than 50 overs in a championship like IPL and good enough to pick up wickets and keep the batsmen under check, why should he be left solely on account of the age factor, is the question posed by many observers. But it appears unlikely that the present selection committee and the team management, who failed to consider even Aaqib Nabi for a place in the national side for the test match against Afghanistan despite his exemplary bowling in the Ranji Trophy last season, will give Bhuvneswar another chance. So the possibility of this lanky pace bowler wearing the national colours again appears remote.

Bhuvaneswar Kumar deserves a big round of applause from the followers of the game for reaching the landmark of 200 wickets in IPL as well as for his splendid performances with the ball this season.

Well played Bhuvi!