Uttar Pradesh captain Bhuvneshwar Kumar added another milestone to his illustrious career by claiming a T20 hat-trick in a thrilling Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy group-stage match against Jharkhand at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on Thursday.
The veteran pacer, recently bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for ₹10.75 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction, displayed his brilliance in a must-win game. After Uttar Pradesh set a competitive target of 161 runs, Bhuvneshwar delivered a masterclass with the new ball, conceding only six runs in his first three overs while applying immense pressure on the Jharkhand batters.
Returning in the 17th over, the 34-year-old turned the match decisively in UP’s favour, dismissing Robin Minz, Bal Krishna, and Vivek Anand Tiwari on consecutive deliveries to complete a stunning hat-trick, capping it off with a maiden over.
Bhuvneshwar ended with outstanding figures of 4-1-6-3, leading Uttar Pradesh to a narrow 10-run victory. His incredible performance made him the fourth bowler to claim a hat-trick in the ongoing SMAT season, joining Akash Madhwal, Shreyas Gopal, and Felix Alemao.
Bhuvneshwar Claims Hat-Trick
1⃣6⃣.1⃣ – Wicket ✅
1⃣6⃣.2⃣ – Wicket ✅
1⃣6⃣.3⃣ – Wicket ✅Watch Bhuvneshwar's terrific hat-trick that helped Uttar Pradesh beat Jharkhand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai 👌👌#SMAT | @IDFCFIRSTBank
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/iZkdrM9S0S pic.twitter.com/p6V6hqkqh1
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) December 5, 2024
Earlier in the tournament, Bhuvneshwar achieved a historic milestone by becoming the first Indian pacer to take 300 T20 wickets, surpassing Jasprit Bumrah. With 181 IPL wickets and 90 international dismissals, he ranks second among Indian pacers in T20 cricket, behind only Bumrah.
In the overall tally of Indian bowlers, only spinners Yuzvendra Chahal (364), Piyush Chawla (319), and Ravichandran Ashwin (310) have more T20 wickets than him. Bhuvneshwar’s T20 journey began in 2009 with Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Champions League T20, where he went wicketless.
Fifteen years later, he returns to RCB as one of the most accomplished seamers in T20 cricket. With a record-breaking SMAT campaign and a high-profile IPL deal, the swing master from Meerut continues to be a dominant force in the format.
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