Malaysian lock Dinesvaran ‘Duke’ Krishnan played in MLR during the 2024 season. He represented the Chicago Hounds for his entire MLR career.

Raised in Sengai Petani, Krishnan moved south to the city of Penang for secondary school. He discovered rugby here and represented his school & district before switching to play soccer and volleyball during high school. He returned to rugby following his graduation in 2007, playing with the Bukit Mertajam Rhinos before being called up to play with the Malaysia U20 side at an Asia RFU U20 Tournament in Brunei. The following year, Krishnan moved from the Rhinos to the Combined Old Boys Rugby Association (COBRA) where he played on and off between 2008-2015. During his time with COBRA, Krishnan also played for the Malaysia National Sevens team in China, Thailand, and Brunei, as well as the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India. In addition to the Sevens side, Krishnan earned 12 test caps for Malaysia at fifteens level.

In 2013, Krishnan spent 2 months training with the Blue Bulls in South Africa, before moving to Japan to play with the Yamaha Júbilo (now the Shizuoka Blue Revs) in Japan’s Top League (now League One) which he did between 2013-2018. In 2018, he was teammates with fellow MLR-er Gerrie Labuschagne (Houston SaberCats). For 2019, he moved on from the Blue Revs to the Hino Red Dolphins, where he played between 2019-2023.

In January 2023, the Chicago Hounds announced the signing of Duke Krishnan for their inaugural MLR season in 2023. He earned 10 MLR appearances for the Hounds, starting 6 times and scoring 1 try. On 22^nd January 2024, Krishnan announced on Instagram that he was hanging up his boots and retiring from playing professional rugby. He established Duke Performance Empire (DPE), focusing on grassroots rugby in Malaysia.

achievements

• MLR Team of the Week: 2023 – Round 17
• MLR Team of the Week: 2023 – Round 3