“Back to where it started” – Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s wife Nupur Nagar’s Instagram story after bowler reunites with RCB at IPL 2025 auction

Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s wife Nupur Nagar shared a throwback picture of the cricketer in the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) jersey on Tuesday, November 26, after the pacer reunited with the franchise after 14 years at the IPL 2025 auction. The reaction on social media came after the Bengaluru-based franchise splurged INR 10.75 crore to buy him at the auction.

RCB engaged in a bidding war with the Mumbai Indians (MI) and the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) before coming up with the winning bid.

Bhuvneshwar played for RCB in his first two IPL seasons – 2009 and 2010. He then spent three seasons at now-defunct Pune Warriors India before staying with SunRisers Hyderabad for 11 years. He also won the 2016 title with the Hyderabad-based franchise.

Take a look at Nupur Nagar’s latest Instagram story (now expired):

Bhuvneshwar Kumar's wife latest Instagram post. [@nupurnagar on IG stories]

Bhuvneshwar Kumar is one of the leading wicket-takers in the T20 tournament, having scalped 181 wickets in 176 matches at an economy rate of 7.56. The 34-year-old took 11 wickets in 16 games as the SunRisers finished as the runners-up last season.

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“His experience and accuracy has always been priceless for the team” – When Virat Kohli praised Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Former India and RCB captain Virat Kohli lauded Bhuvneshwar Kumar for his experience ahead of the 2021 T20 World Cup in UAE. The 36-year-old had said (via ESPNcricinfo):

“He bowls lengths so well and so consistently, which is not an easy thing to get away in T20 cricket, especially with the new ball. It's quite an underrated thing and I think his experience and accuracy has always been priceless for the team.”

"His economy rates still continue to be top-notch, something that he's always been known for and his experience comes to the fore under pressure,” he added.

Players bought by RCB at the IPL 2025 auction:

Liam Livingstone (Rs 8.75 crore), Phil Salt (Rs 11.50 crore), Jitesh Sharma (Rs 11 crore), Josh Hazlewood ((₹12.50 crore), Rasikh Dar ((₹6 crore), Suyash Sharma ((₹2.60 crore), Krunal Pandya ((₹5.75 crore), Bhuvneshwar Kumar ((₹10.75 crore), Swapnil Singh ((₹50 lakh), Tim David ((₹3 crore), Romario Shepherd ((₹1.50 crore), Nuwan Thushara ((₹1.60 crore), Manoj Bhandage ((₹30 lakh), Jacob Bethell ((₹2.60 crore), Devdutt Padikkal ((₹2 crore), Swastik Chikara ((₹30 lakh), Lungi Ngidi ((₹1 crore), Abhinandan Singh ((₹30 lakh), Mohit Rathee (₹30 lakh).

Players retained:

Virat Kohli (₹21 crore), Rajat Patidar (₹11 crore), Yash Dayal (₹5 crore).