Bhuvneshwar Kumar completes maiden SMAT hat-trick after RCB’s bumper IPL deal

Bhuvneshwar Kumar, ace India seamer and Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) newest recruit, has picked a stunning hat-trick in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) for Uttar Pradesh. Playing against Jharkhand at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday (Dec 5), the right-arm seamer completed his debut T20 hat-trick in the 17th over, bowling a maiden that piled pressure on the opposition. A complete team show helped UP the must-win game by ten runs.

Giving Jharkhand a target of 161, Kumar began with his routine disciplined bowling, completing three overs inside the Powerplay for just six runs, though he remained wicketless. The overlooked India seamer returned to bowl the 17th over, picking his first T20 hat-trick by removing Robin Minz, Bal Krishna, and Vivek Anand Tiwari in consecutive deliveries. Besides, he bowled a maiden, completing his spell of 4-1-6-3.

HAT-TRICK! Bhuvneshwar Kumar (3.3-6-3) Jharkhand 116/8 #JHAvUP #SMAT — BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) December 5, 2024

With this hat trick, he became the fourth bowler this season after Akash Madhwal, Shreyas Gopal, and Felix Alemao to achieve this feat.

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Early in this tournament, Bhuvneshwar became the first Indian seamer and fourth overall to pick 300 or more wickets in T20s. He joined the elite list of Yuzvendra Chahal (364), Piyush Chawla (319), and Ravichandran Ashwin (310). Following this game, the UP captain now has 305 wickets besides his name.

Bhuvneshwar to play for RCB in IPL 2025

The Indian new-ball quick will ply his trade for a new franchise from IPL 2025 onwards. Having represented the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) for a decade (2014-2024), wherein he won an IPL title in 2016, losing two finals since (2018 and 2024), Bhuvneshwar will now play for RCB, who purchased him for a whopping $1.26mn (INR 10.75 crore) at the IPL 2025 mega auction in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Kumar will lead RCB’s heavy-pace attack consisting of Yash Dayal and Rasikh Dar (as India seamers) alongside Josh Hazlewood, Nuwan Thushara and Lungi Ngidi.

While he made his name during his early days with now-defunct Pune Warriors India (PWI), Kumar became the superstar following his rise in the Indian jersey across formats and in SRH.

However, 15 years after his RCB debut (in 2009), Bhuvneshwar will return to his former IPL franchise.

(With inputs from agencies)