In sports, age is often the parameter to define the value of talent but on many occasions, athletes have defied the age barrier to achieve monumental success. The most recent example of such occasion in cricket is the 2018 IPL when the oldest squad in the tournament won the edition despite many experts giving them no hopes of competing with a fitter and younger units. More than a batsman, it is much tougher for a bowler to provide sustained excellence during his older years, particularly in Test cricket. In this article, we will look at five bowlers who produced great spells inspite of their age,
5. Tim Murtagh (37 years 356 days) vs England, 2018
On a Lord’s pitch which heavily favoured the seamers. Murtagh produced a magical spell to bowl out the hosts for just 85. In Murtagh’s second over, Jason Roy edged to the slips while Rory Burns departed in a similar manner. England struggled to deal with the excessive movement on offer as Bairstow was castled by a perfect inswinger from Murtagh.
Woakes was trapped in front, by another inswinger while Moeen Ali also departed for a duck. The English who were on a high after winning the World Cup were given a reality check before the Ashes by the wily Tim Murtagh.
4. Muttiah Muralitharan (38 years 92 days) vs India, 2010
The most prolific bowler in the history of cricket got the farewell he deserved as he departed with a superb five wicket haul and 800 wickets to his name. In the first Test against India at Galle, Sri Lanka declared after scoring 520 runs. In reply, India were bowled out for 276 thanks to Murali’s five wicket haul.
In vintage fashion, he trapped Tendulkar in front of the stumps and castled MS Dhoni. Yuvraj edged to the slip while Mithun’s departure sealed a five-wicket haul for the master.
3. Courtney Walsh (38 years 138 days) vs South Africa, 2001
By the time he finished his career, Walsh wore the badge of most prolific pacer in the history of Test cricket, also having played more Tests than any other bowler at the time of his retirement. In the second Test of the series in Port of Spain, Walsh made history by picking up five wickets and reaching the milestone of 500 wickets.
Walsh removed Kirsten as he flashed outside off stump and his 500th wicket was the prized scalp of Jacques Kallis. He finished with figures of 6 for 61 and bowled 36 overs at the age of 38.
2. James Anderson (38 years 176 days) vs Sri Lanka, 2021
Anderson’s record in the subcontinent has always attracted a lot of criticism but this spell is proof that he can make the ball talk in any condition. On a pitch that offered nothing for the bowlers, Jimmy registered figures of 40 for 6. He kept nagging the batsmen outside off stump and reaped rewards for his discipline.
As always, his most potent weapon was the inswinger as Oshada Fernando found out early in the innings. He also bowled more overs than his younger patriots to Sam Curran and Mark Wood which is an ode to his incredible fitness and determination.
1. Rangana Herath (40 years 123 days) vs South Africa, 2018
In the first innings of this Test, Herath picked up only one wicket as the other spinners ran circles around the Proteas. He came into his own in the second innings as his ability to turn the ball away from the middle stump hindered the judgment of the Proteas’ right handers.
Markram departed while trying a sweep while Amla was castled by a peach that hit the top of off stump. Theunis de Bruyn played for turn and saw his stumps going for a walk. Bavuma and de Kock were dismissed soon as Herath helped Sri Lanka register an easy victory.
