Pravin Tambe: The man who defied his age to become a successful cricketer

Tambe made his IPL debut at the age of 41

From being a ‘liaison manager’ at the DY Patil stadium during the first few seasons of the IPL to representing the Rajasthan Royals, Pravin Tambe indeed has come a long way. This humble and hardworking Mumbaikar has seen it all in the last couple of seasons, but has still not stopped putting in the early hours of toil, on a regular basis, clearly showing the appetite to learn and evolve even at the age of 43.

But how did it all happen for this middle-class leg-spinner? A player who had never had any taste of first class cricket? Somebody who had only come as close as getting selected in the Mumbai Ranji team in 2000, but never got a look-in after that. So what changed his world in a jiffy?

RR came calling

The answer is, Rahul Dravid. It was Rahul Dravid, Paddy Upton and the other core RR members who talent scouted an ageing Tambe. A famous colloquial saying goes like, ‘Sirf johri ko hi asli heere ka pehchaan hai’ (Only a jeweler can spot a real diamond) that fits beautifully.

This is a classical example of what an experienced head/ eyes can do, they can see things which others can’t. This is a big contribution from Rahul Dravid to Indian cricket, as this epitomizes the fact that if a good statesman of the game gets involved with the sport after retirement, it is bound to reap rewards.

The man never gave up and after impressing in a T20 tournament in Mumbai for DY Patil, Tambe was called for trials by the Royals who were scouting him without his knowledge. Naturally, he was surprised when Abey Kuruvilla, who was the sports director at DY Patil broke the news to him.

Dravid and Upton were delighted by the fact that throughout his spell at the RR camp, not even a single batsman could hit him for a four or a six. No wonder they were impressed, as they immediately considered him in their plans.

Such stories are unheard of in cricket. Brad Hogg comes to mind, but you have to understand that Hogg played first class cricket for a very long time and has represented Australia in the ODI format on a regular basis, so that dilutes his story. So, after spotting talent in this 41-year-old, he was fast-tracked into the RR scheme of things with the license to go for wickets.

Instant success followed

He did it to perfection impressing one and all in the 2013 IPL. But his big moment came in the CLT20 later that year as he finished as the highest wicket taker in the tournament. He performed better than the likes of Ashwin and Narine and RR had no second thoughts about retaining him for the next season.

In 2014, he took his performance to the next level with more variations added to his repertoire; the low googly, the round arm delivery and many more. He went on to pick a hattrick against eventual champions KKR. By cricketing standards, he is not tall hence he cannot extract the kind of bounce somebody taller would, but he has a bagful of tricks, which could fox the best batters around the globe.

Rahul Dravid and RR’s coach Paddy Upton were the ones who scouted Tambe

Team Rajasthan have backed promise and talent ever since the team came into existence and Tambe’s story has added value to their reputation. Personally for him, his dream came true at the end of 2013 when he was picked for Mumbai’s Ranji side for the very first time. He made his debut against Odisha and then went on to play one more match against Gujarat.

Most cricketers retire by the age of 37 (Today: on an average, 20 years back: 34), as their reflexes slow down, affecting the agility. Tambe is 43 years old and is still going strong. The credit has to be given to Rahul Dravid and the support staff of the Royals for having the belief in someone who had probably lost self-belief and backing him to the hilt.

Now realize a person inching 30, with a 9-hour job, having to suddenly ignite lost passion and get back to old chores, is in itself a herculean task; more mentally than physically. That adds more spice to the tale of this man, defying age to follow a dream/passion.

Today, in the current scenario he does not make a cut in the eleven, but Pravin Tambe is an inspiration for millions who have considered throwing in the towel, to reconsider.