Age no barrier

Twenty20 cricket was supposed to be played by the young and theories floated that its "an young man's" game... The old and the veterans cannot survive in this format... IPL2009 seems to be re-writing that now...

Players written off, supposedly past their primes, have proved that the IPL, and the world, belongs not to youth or any other category..

Matthew Hayden for Chennai has been awesome... Needless to say he is the orange cap holder (highest run getter in the tournament). The quick starts that he has provided has been instrumental in their team's win on many a occasion..
Staying with Chennai, how could one forget the wily old fox from Sri Lanka -Mutthiah Muralitharan.. A live wire on the field.. He hasn't set the stage on fire with his bowling but has bowled some match turning spells..

Think of the Deccan Chargers and Gilly comes to our mind.. The team has won whenever Gilly gave them a great start.. Gilly also finds himself in the list of leading run scorers for IPL2009 and added to that he tops the list for most catches and stumping...

Though there is nothing worth mentioning about KR, Ganguly's performance against RR (a 46 in a losing cause) was one of the most calm and composed innings in a T20 match.. He was unperturbed by what was going on around him with Shane Warne trying out many a trick to distract Dada...



Shane Warne, master of tricks and truly an inspiration for all those around him... The way he transformed and instilled confidence in a rookie, Kamran Khan, is appreciable.. Using Yusuf Pathan at various positions in the batting order is a masterful gamble... And the gamble has paid of on all occasions... The players are at ease and everyone wants to perform well... The ball may not know his age but he still gives the ball the same rip that he used to !! Class act ......

The oldest pair opening the innings will make the opponents smile in happiness but not if its Sanath and Sachin.. Sachin's 59 in the opening match and a 68 against KR will be etched in our memories as one of the best that this great man has produced.. Sanath is still so fit and agile at 40 !! (Though he is the one who drops sitters).. He hasn't recreated the same magic as that of the opening edition but not so poor either ...



Next, Dravid and Anil Kumble who have worked wonders for the Bangalore Royal Challengers, an outfit which seemed as powerful only on paper. Adapting their games to meet the African conditions, Dravid and Kumble have blossomed.. Scoring a fifty and thumping the fists in an animated way has never been Dravid's game, even when he went past 10000 or in adelaide win... Those who have seen the act would be in a position to appreciate this..
Kumble - well what can you say !! Need a book of adjectives to describe his courage and the fire in him to still perform well and play match winning roles.. We have seen his refusal to give up when he came with a bandage around his jaw, after having broken it, to trap Lara in front of the wickets.. This character has long been counted among his greatest assets.. He is turning the tides for his home team Bengaluru !! 


This has just proven that even in 20-over cricket, age is not the issue. The IPL has given us an opportunity to watch great players who may be out of their national side or those who are barely managing to cling onto it, but whose resolve remains intact, whose hunger for success remains intact....