It seemed that the phrase 'old is gold' was on its way out with the advent of T20 cricket. However, the old guard has reiterated that there is no substitute for experience, in life or on the cricket field, as the veterans continue to deliver knockout punches in the IPL.
Much was made of the Chennai Super Kings being the Dad's Army after the franchise picked a team rife with players over 30 at the 2018 auction. The joke was on the trollers themselves as the MS Dhoni-led CSK went on to win two titles in the next four seasons.
Several players aged 35 and above continue to impress in the IPL. While the likes of Ajinkya Rahane, Mohammad Nabi, Robin Uthappa and Kieron Pollard may or may not be back with their franchises the next year, here's a look at the 'senior citizens' who will definitely ply their trade in IPL 2023.
David Warner (35 Years)
Even the most pessimistic of the critics were not ready to discard David Warner just yet when he was not only stripped off the Sunrisers Hyderabad captaincy in IPL 2021 but dropped from the playing XI as well.
It wasn't a surprise that SRH did not bid for the Australian at the next auction as he landed with the Delhi Capitals. After missing the first couple of games due to national commitment, David Warner showed that he was still among the best in the business as the opener finished as the highest run-scorer for Delhi Capitals with 432 runs at an average of 48 and a strike rate of over 150, with the help of five centuries and the best of 92 not out.
The southpaw holds the record for scoring the most number of half-centuries in the IPL and is also the third-highest scorer in IPL history.
Ravichandran Ashwin (35 years)
Ravichandran Ashwin's T20 career got a new lease of life after he was picked in the Indian squad for the 2021 T20 World Cup and had decent outings. Accustomed to switching franchises, Ashwin found himself in the Rajasthan Royals camp this year and formed a formidable spin bowling duo with Yuzvendra Chahal.
Although he did not pick up a truckload of wickets, with 11 scalps from 15 outings, his economy rate of 7.33 was quite impressive.
Dinesh Karthik (36 years)
Personification of the never-say-die attitude, Dinesh Karthik is still going strong at 36. It's hard to believe that Karthik continued to knock on the door of the Indian selectors even after the 2019 ODI World Cup debacle and has finally been entertained.
The DK thunderstorm came like a bolt out of the blue as he won Royal Challengers Bangalore multiple matches on his own this year and was instrumental in taking the team to the playoffs.
For a batsman who only gets to face a handful of deliveries every match, it's amazing that Karthik is among the top three run-scorers for his franchise and boasts of a jaw-dropping strike rate of over 185, the best among batters having faced a minimum of 100 balls this season.
Not only next year, the in-demand wicketkeeper batsman doesn't seem to be going anywhere for the next couple of IPL seasons.
Ambati Rayudu (36 years)
Notorious for his short temper and '3D' remark, Ambati Rayudu attracted headlines once again after he announced his IPL retirement, thanking Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians for the 13 years of his wonderful IPL journey.
Much like his international retirement announcement, a U-turn came shortly, with Rayudu deleting the tweet and CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan confirming that he will continue to be available for the next season as well.
The best guess here is that with CSK already out of playoff contention, the team obviously wanted to test their bench and the management must have conveyed that to the 36-year-old, which elicited a knee-jerk response.
In 2018, when he was in line to feature in the next year's World Cup, Rayudu produced his best performance, smoking 602 runs at an average of 43 and a strike rate of almost 150, with one century and three half-centuries.
His best output since then has been 359 runs in IPL 2020. Although glimpses of his best were on display during his 39-ball 78 against Punjab Kings this year as well, it will be fair to say that his best is probably behind him.
Wriddhiman Saha (37 years)
Not shown enough faith by the team management at the start of the season... things don't quite click at the top of the order... Wriddhiman Saha finally comes to the rescue and does a decent job.
This has been the story for the opener through his IPL career. He once again made things easier for table toppers Gujarat Titans after Matthew Wade wasn't able to fire at the top. Saha did more than a serviceable job with 312 runs from 10 matches in the group stage at an average of almost 35 and a strike rate of close to 125, with three half-centuries.
One can only hope that Gujarat continue to show faith in the Bengal wicketkeeper batsman and he gets a fair run at the top alongside Shubman Gill in the coming seasons as well.
Dwayne Bravo (38 years)
A few eyebrows were raised when, at 37, Dwayne Bravo was still picked at the mega auction by Chennai Super Kings. However, the Caribbean bowling all-rounder repaid the faith of the CSK management once again, finishing as the top wicket-taker for the side with 16 wickets from 10 matches, and the best of 3/20.
Bravo's economy rate of 8.70 is also commendable, given that he bowls most of his overs at the death.
MS Dhoni (40 years)
From 'definitely not' to 'definitely yes', MS Dhoni continues to rule the hearts of the CSK fans. A transition strategy was in fact put in place by the CSK management and Dhoni himself, handing over the captaincy to Ravindra Jadeja, but the move did not quite work out.
Dhoni has now said that it will be unfair for the Chennai fans if he doesn't play in front of the home crowd before walking away and will definitely be back next year.
MSD looked a lot more free flowing this year as compared to IPL 2021. Even if runs from his blade are kept aside, when Mahi wears the captaincy armband and dons the wicket keeping gloves, there is a sense of calm at CSK.
With Dhoni confirming his availability for the next season, not only as a player but as captain as well, Diwali has come early for the Whistle Podu army.
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