“In India, no participant makes a debut on the age of 30, selectors won’t entertain such gamers,” Irfan Pathan had instructed Suresh Raina throughout an Instagram Stay session final yr. Whereas he was principally proper, there have been some notable exceptions, like Suryakumar Yadav, who turned 30 final yr. Yadav was one in every of three gamers who bought their maiden India call-ups for the upcoming T20I sequence vs England final week.
Whereas there have been some gamers who made their T20 debuts (Rahul Dravid, 38 years) or ODI debuts (Bhagwath Chandrashekhar, 31 years) after having performed different codecs for a few years, cases of cricketers being handed their first worldwide matches after having turned 30 are uncommon. Listed here are a number of notable exceptions from latest years:
Suryakumar Yadav – Known as up for upcoming T20I sequence vs England
The 30-year-old Mumbai batsman, who has been a continuing performer within the Indian Premier League for his franchise Mumbai Indians and likewise within the home circuit, was rewarded for his performances after a protracted wait on Saturday.
Surya, who has captained Mumbai in Ranji Trophy and different home tournaments, has performed 77 first-class matches and amassed 5,326 runs.
Faiz Fazal – Solely ODI at 31 years
Faiz Fazal (Specific File Picture)
Faiz Fazal has 8404 runs in first-class cricket at a median over 40, however he solely bought an opportunity to play one match for India — after the age of 30. He scored a half-century on debut, having been picked for a tour of Zimbabwe. Nevertheless, he by no means bought an opportunity to placed on the India colors once more.
READ | Faiz Fazal’s path to Indian team and success does not run through IPL
Sreenath Aravind – Solely T20I at 31 years
Sreenath Aravind (File Picture/IPL)
A terrific-grandnephew of C Rajagopalachari — the final Governor Common of India — Aravind was a late bloomer, having made his FC debut at 24 and having been overshadowed by Karnataka’s different pacers. It was within the fourth version of the IPL that Aravind got here to the limelight, being Royal Challengers Bangalore’s highest wicket-taker with 21 wickets.
READ | Aravind gets late swing
Sameer Dighe – ODI debut at 31, Take a look at debut at 32
Sameer Dighe was a surpise decide within the Indian aspect throughout the time India had been searching for a substitute for Nayan Mongia below new captain Sourav Ganguly. MSK Prasad had didn’t impress, and so the Mumbai keeper — who was on the verge of giving up cricket and travelling to the USA for finding out — made his worldwide debut on the age of 31.
Utpal Chatterjee – ODI debut at 30
Veteran spinner Utpal Chatterjee obtained his maiden call-up on the age of 30 for the Asia Cup in 1995. Within the following sequence vs New Zealand, he confronted an assault from Martin Crowe, conceding 54 runs from 8.5 wicketless overs, and was by no means thought-about once more.
