IPL 2022: Bhuvneshwar Kumar Can Become First Indian Pace Bowler To Achieve This Milestone In IPL

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar is all set to play in his ninth season for the Orange Army in the IPL 2022. Bhuvneshwar joined the franchise in 2014 after playing for now-defunct team Pune Warriors India in three IPL seasons (2011-13).

In his early years at SRH, Bhuvneshwar would combine with the likes of Dale Steyn and Ishant Sharma to form a lethal pace bowling attack in the team. Bhuvneshwar, who has the ability to swing the ball both ways, had garnered attention after he dismissed legendary Indian batter, Sachin Tendulkar, for a duck for the first time in domestic cricket.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar won the Purple cap in successive IPL seasons

The Uttar Pradesh bowler has also delivered up to his potential in the IPL for Sunrisers Hyderabad over the years. He bowled the final over against Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2016 final and successfully defended 18 runs as SRH won their first title under David Warner’s leadership.

Bhuvneshwar was the leading wicket-taker in IPL 2016 with 23 wickets at an economy rate of 7.42 and is the only bowler to retain the ‘Purple cap’ in IPL next season. The SRH pacer scalped 26 wickets in 14 games in IPL 2017 at an economy rate of 7.05 and an average of 14.19.

After being marred with a series of injuries, Bhuvneshwar’s performance has massively dipped in the IPL as the 32-year-old could just manage to snap six wickets from 11 games last season and also leaked runs in the slog overs.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar needs eight wickets to complete 150 IPL wickets

SRH re-purchased Bhuvneshwar for a sum of INR 4.20 crore in the IPL 2022 auction. The Uttar Pradesh seamer has accumulated 142 wickets in 132 IPL games and is just eight wickets shy of joining an elusive record list.

Bhuvneshwar will become the first Indian pacer to achieve 150 IPL wickets and third overall as Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga and West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo lead the charts with 170 wickets.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar would be the sixth bowler to reach the milestone as Harbhajan Singh, Piyush Chawla and Amit Mishra are the other three Indian bowlers to have picked 150 IPL wickets. Rajasthan Royals spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is also in the race of completing the achievement, the Tamil Nadu player has bagged 145 IPL scalps in 167 games.

Also Read: On The Basis Of Recent Performances, Deepak Chahar Is Ahead Of Bhuvneshwar Kumar- Irfan Pathan