Meet P Bhuvaneswaran, The Bowler Who Foiled Sai Kishore's No. 3 Move And Derailed Tiruppur In TNPL 2026

P Bhuvaneswaran and Sai Kishore [Source: TNPL]

P Bhuvaneswaran, a 32-year-old all-rounder, represents Dindigul Dragons in the TNPL 2026 and recently showed his calibre in his very first match of the season, marking Gujarat Titans fame Sai Kishore pay for his daring.

While Sai Kishore is generally a leader with the ball and currently the captain of IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans, he decided to move up the batting order by a huge leap to come in and bat at No. 3. Usually, Kishore is a quiet one with the bat and comes in at No. 7 or later. However, his jump up the pecking order came as a surprise. 

Nevertheless, Kishore’s daring move was quickly silenced by P Bhuvaneswaran, who removed him for just 4 runs.

Who is P Bhuvaneswaran? The TNPL Profile

P Bhuvaneswaran was roped in by the Dindigul Dragons for a reasonable price of 2.05 lakh INR. The talented all-rounder, who represented IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans in his debut season of 2023, impressed from the very beginning. 

The cricketer took 13 wickets from the 6 matches he featured in while having an economy rate of 8.79 and striking at a phenomenal 10.00. In the next season, he had a poor run, though. For IDream, he bagged 8 wickets from 9 matches despite continued backing and was also expensive at 9.00.

Discarded Twice, TNPL 2026 To Prove

In 2025, though, IDream released him, not showing much faith, and Lyca Kovai Kings didn’t delay a bit to pick him up. This time, he got a salary hike too as he was picked up by LKK for a price of 3.05 lakh INR in the TNPL 2025 auction. 

In that season, Bhuvaneswaran failed to impress again. Only 5 wickets from 6 matches but an impressive economy rate of 7.07. That also broke Kings’ trust, and finally he was bagged by Dindigul Dragons in the 2026 auction.

Now, P Bhuvaneswaran showed his potential in the very first match for the Dragons. Bowling just 3 overs, he picked 3 wickets, dismantling IDream’s Amith Sathvik, Sai Kishore and Pradosh Ranjan Paul. Although he took beatings by leaking 32 runs, his quick finds inside the powerplay helped Dragons gain the upper hand over Kishore’s men.

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The Surprise Escalation and De-Escalation Of Sai Kishore

Kishore is no doubt a very fruitful spin bowler. The left-arm orthodox bowler from Tamil Nadu impressed with his figures in IPL 2025 for Gujarat Titans and is a master wrecker of batting lineups on turner pitches.

However, for someone who generally bats at No. 9 or No. 10 in T20 cricket, the promotion on August 4 in the TNPL match seemed quite extraordinary. Kishore came in to bat as the skipper, just after Amith’s wicket, at No. 3, which looked more like a pinch-hitter kind of move instead of a proper responsible decision.

Sai Kishore intended to swing the bat early and get some quick runs to best use the powerplay, but Bhuvaneswaran drained all his hopes early with a knuckle ball. Kishore failed to read the slow delivery from the bowler and chipped it straight to a fielder on the first ball of the 5th over, ending his innings.

P Bhuvaneswaran Attracts IPL Interest With His Performance

Bhuvaneswaran is a serious talent with the ball. Although he is not yet fully explored with the bat, he can be of use in the lower middle order too. This calls for a good prospect, especially in the IPL where fast-bowling all-rounders are given priority.

Even if he is not a solid batter, his solid line and length and good eye for wickets can give him a good place in the Playing XI or in the Impact Substitute list.

Bhuvaneswaran haven’t been picked or drafted by any of the IPL franchises in the auction yet; however, an eye-catching performance in TNPL 2026 could make him one of the candidates for the IPL 2027 auction list. Although age is not on his side, at 32, P Bhuvaneswaran could only hope that his bowling spells speak for him and not his late-blooming career in Tamil Nadu.

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