Over the years, the Indian Premier League (IPL) has evolved into a breeding ground for young and coming cricketers all over the country. In fact, every season, the tournament celebrates the performance of its talented future stars with the Emerging Player award. Fair to say that the tournament has a lot of time for grooming its youngsters to be among the absolute best in the world.
But that’s not to say that the IPL has shut down its doors for players who have crossed a certain age-group threshold. On countless occasions, players- who looked to be approaching the twilight of their careers- managed to bounce back to form and prominence thanks to their stellar showing in the tournament.
The 2022 season is going to be no different on that front, as far as some of the seasoned cricketing pros are concerned. In this article, we will be looking at the five oldest players who will be participating in the upcoming 15th edition of the Indian Premier League.
5. Mohammed Nabi (37 years and 70 days)
The incumbent captain of the Afghanistan men’s cricket team comes equipped with a truckload of experience in the shortest format of the game; thanks to his innumerable stints in T20 franchises all across the globe. This season, Nabi will be shifting home base from his erstwhile Hyderabad franchise to play for the Kolkata Knight Riders. His role in the team will mostly be that of a backup player to Sunil Narine, but Nabi’s veritable acumen and experience will be a welcome addition to the young, new-look KKR team.
4. Wriddhiman Saha (37 years and 138 days)
While Saha’s days in the international fold might be numbered due to his WhatsApp interactions with the respected Boria Majumdar, the Bengal keeper-bat still has a lot to offer in the domestic arena. Saha will be playing for the newbie Gujarat Titans franchise this year, and considering their dearth of Indian wicket-keeping options, Wriddhi might just get to play a central role in the team’s campaign. And with Jason Roy’s recent withdrawal from the IPL, Saha looks one of the prime contenders to bat at the top order for Gujarat.
3. Faf du Plessis (37 years and 241 days)
The forever-fit Faf du Plessis might have had to bid adieu to his beloved Chennai Super Kings franchise this season. But it seems like he will have very little breathing room while transitioning into his new franchise- the Royal Challengers Bangalore- as he seems to be one of RCB’s top candidates to assume the mantle of captaincy. The former South Africa skipper had glamorous records in both the captaincy and batting departments, and RCB fans would be hoping that those numbers translate equally well into his maiden IPL captaincy role should he be entrusted with that.
2. Dwayne Bravo (38 years and 155 days)
From one ‘Chennai boy’ to another, we move onto West Indies mercurial Dwayne ‘DJ’ Bravo. It would be trivial formality to describe Bravo’s skillsets as one of the finest and most experienced T20 bowlers- especially in the death overs- going around in the circuit. Bravo will, however, have his task cut out this season as the premier death bowler in the Chennai franchise. It will be interesting to see how well he’s able to manage his fitness and bowling this year, especially in the absence of some pedigreed bowling options in the Chennai camp.
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1. MS Dhoni (40 years and 247 days)
It was hardly a surprise that the legendary MSD was gonna find his name in this list. In recent times, Dhoni’s finishing skills with the bat might have taken a slight dip; but the leadership, mentoring, and wicket-keeping skills that he brings onto the table are simply unrivaled. There will, however, be a tad bit more anxiety among fans around Dhoni’s tenure with CSK this year. Having already demoted himself to the team’s second retention pick, there’s a genuine air of uncertainty on how long Dhoni will keep on playing in this tournament. Nevertheless, whatever happens, it’s going to be a very exciting time for all fans- CSK supporters or not- to see Thala Dhoni back in action.