Bhuvneshwar Kumar is leading Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s fast bowling attack in their IPL 2026 match against Punjab Kings on Sunday (May 17). The 35-year-old fast bowler from Meerut bowled the first over of the PBKS innings in the 223-run chase at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamsala and picked up Priyansh Arya’s wicket on the third ball itself.
IPL 2026 | Schedule | Results | Orange Cap | Purple Cap
The left-handed opening batter from Delhi faced three balls but was not able to score even one run. The wicket of Priyansh helped Bhuvneshwar become the first Indian bowler to take 50 wickets in the first over of T20 matches.
Bhuvneshwar is overall the fourth bowler in the world to dismiss 50 or more batters in the first
over of T20s.
The record of taking most wickets in first overs of a T20 match is held by Pakistan’s Shaheen Shah Afridi. The left-arm pacer, who is the highest wicket-taker for Pakistan in T20Is, has dismissed 64 batters in the first over. He is followed by England’s David Willey (63 wickets), and former Pakistan left-arm pacer Mohammad Amir has picked up 52 T20 wickets in the first over.
Most wickets in first over of T20 matches
| PLAYER | COUNTRY | WICKETS |
| Shaheen Shah Afridi | Pakistan | 64 |
| David Willey | England | 63 |
| Mohammad Amir | Pakistan | 52 |
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | India | 50* |
| Trent Boult | New Zealand | 49 |
After taking Priyansh’s wicket in his first over, Bhuvneshwar dismissed Priyansh’s opening partner Prabhsimran Singh in his second over. The right-handed wicketkeeper-batter was caught by Devdutt Padikkal in the slip after scoring just 2 runs from 5 balls.
The wicket of Prabh helped Bhuvneshwar extend his tally of wickets to 36 in the IPL against the Punjab Kings. He is now the joint highest wicket-taker in the IPL against Punjab Kings.
Most wickets against Punjab Kings in IPL
| PLAYER | TEAM(S) | MATCHES | WICKETS | BEST FIGURES |
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | Pune Warriors, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Sunrisers Hyderabad | 26* | 36* | 5/19 |
| Sunil Narine | Kolkata Knight Riders | 27 | 36 | 5/19 |
| Umesh Yadav | Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Titans, Kolkata Knight Riders, Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 22 | 35 | 4/23 |
| Yuzvendra Chahal | Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Rajasthan Royals | 21 | 32 | 4/25 |
| Rashid Khan | Gujarat Titans, Sunrisers Hyderabad | 18 | 27 | 3/12 |
If Bhuvneshwar, who is leading the Purple Cap race in IPL 2026, manages to take at least one more wicket in the ongoing match, then he will break the record of taking the most wickets against one team in the IPL.
As of now, he is tied with Sunil Narine. Narine, who has represented Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL since 2012, has also accounted for the dismissal of 36 PBKS batters.
Most wickets against one team in IPL
| PLAYER | TEAM | MATCHES | WICKETS | BEST FIGURES | AGAINST |
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | Pune Warriors, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Sunrisers Hyderabad | 26* | 36* | 5/19 | Punjab Kings |
| Sunil Narine | Kolkata Knight Riders | 27 | 36 | 5/19 | Punjab Kings |
| Umesh Yadav | Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Titans, Kolkata Knight Riders, Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 22 | 35 | 4/23 | Punjab Kings |
| Dwayne Bravo | Chennai Super Kings, Gujarat Lions | 22 | 33 | 4/42 | Mumbai Indians |
| Yuzvendra Chahal | Mumbai Indians, Punjab Kings, Rajasthan Royals, Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 25 | 33 | 5/40 | Kolkata Knight Riders |
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | Pune Warriors, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Sunrisers Hyderabad | 31 | 33 | 3/19 | Kolkata Knight Riders |
| Mohit Sharma | Chennai Super Kings, Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Titans, Punjab Kings | 21 | 33 | 5/10 | Mumbai Indians |
While Narine has played all of his IPL matches against PBKS for KKR, Bhuvneshwar has also represented Pune Warriors and Sunrisers Hyderabad in the world’s richest franchise cricket league against Punjab Kings.
