Oldest Player of IPL History - Pravin Tambe

Pravin Vijay Tambe, born on 8 October 1971, is an Indian cricketer who was to play for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2020. However, BCCI has ended his IPL journey very recently. At his debut, playing for the Rajasthan Royals against the Delhi Capitals, Tambe was the oldest player to play at 41 years old. And for this season, he will also be the oldest IPL player in history. He was to take the white ball in his hand at the age of 48 in this IPL tournament. At the IPL 2020 auctions, he was the oldest player ever to be sold. However, in the recent development, BCCI has prohibited him from playing for KKR.

Claim to fame

Pravin Tambe shot to popularity overnight from anonymity after he made his Indian Premier League debut at 41 years old for Rajasthan Royals in the 2013 season. Prior to his inclusion in the group, Tambe had never played any first-class cricket yet had some sort of reputation in club cricket.

Tambe proceeded to turn into the main wicket-taker in the Champions League T20 after making an interesting IPL debut, soon thereafter. He took 12 wickets in the season at an average of 6.5. These exhibitions earned him his maiden Ranji call for the Mumbai group during the 2013–14 Ranji Trophy. In the 2014 IPL season, Tambe pulled a splendid hat-trick against Kolkata Knight Riders, the first of that season and twelfth, in total. His reliable performances in the T20 games made him an important part of the Rajasthan Royals team.

Early stages

Pravin began as a young fast bowler; however, his Orient shipping Ajay Kadam requested him to bowl leg-spin. Tambe’s story changed from this point. He turned into an important part of the Shivaji Park Gymkhana crew where his leg-spin tricks intrigued Sandeep Patil who evaluated his flipper and praised him highly.

IPL Career

Pravin has the most captivating story to tell about his career. The cricketer, who had never played for his city, got picked to play in the Indian Premier League.

Previous colleague and Mumbai selector Abey Kuruvilla additionally uncovered that Tambe has only reached his top in the last 8 years. It was since the time Pravin changed from bowling pace to leg-spin. The Mumbai-based bowler got the Golden Wicket Award for taking most wickets in the Champions League 2013 as well.

He took an exciting hat-trick against the Kolkata Knight Riders in Ahmedabad on 5th May 2014. It brought him the man of the match award in his bag. In IPL 2014, for the first time of his cricket career, the leg-spinner got the purple cap. He was the highest wicket-taker till the 25th match of that season. In February 2017, Sunrisers Hyderabad purchased him for INR 10 Lakhs. Kolkata Knight Riders purchased him for this season's IPL.

Tambe was the first bowler to take 10 wickets at an average of 5.90 in the Champions League T20. He additionally was the first and only bowler to bowl 15 overs in the tournament without giving even a six. The 3.93 economy rate of Tambe is the best among the bowlers who have guaranteed 5 wickets or more in the tournament.

Tambe has joined KKR in the UAE to 'help' the team prepare!

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