“The wine that aged fine”- Pravin Tambe || Story, journey and life lessons from the extraordinary player of IPL 2014

Pravin Tambe – The game changer for RR in 2014

May 5, 2014, match 25 of the season witnessed one of the remarkable turnarounds in T20s. The Kolkata Knight Riders needed 49 off last 5 overs with 7 wickets in hand and it appeared to be a cake walk for KKR unless a miracle happens. A lesser-known leg spinner takes charge for the opponents.

Manish Pandey danced down the track for a single but was deceived by the common sense of the bowler who shot a big wide ball seeing the batsman advancing and the wicket keeper finishing the stumping formalities.

The next batsman Yusuf Pathan who stepped down on front foot in the next ball drove one straight back in the air to the bowler who seemed not ready to miss out grabbing on any chance that comes by.

Ryan ten Doeschate who came in next, was done by a yorker where he had no hint of what was happening and trapped on foot for being adjudged leg before. KKR had no ways to recover then and was thrown away from the game by a hat-trick that came off just 2 legal deliveries for the first time in the history of IPL.

The Man who brought in such massive destruction was a 42-year-old young then, Pravin Vijay Tambe!! 

In the world of t20 that is all about flamboyance, flare, adrenaline and youth, Pravin Tambe delivered all the above at his 40s when his fellow aged cricketers were exclaiming him from the commentary box and dug out!

Watch: Pravin Tambe’s game changing hat-trick vs KKR 

The journey

Pravin Vijay Tambe was born on October 8, 1971 in Mumbai. He was pursuing cricket from a young age and he dreamed of becoming a fast bowler but the future had other ideas with him when he switched to leg spin on the advice of one of his team captains Ajay Kadam.

Though he spent years and years playing cricket, it took 41 years for him to register himself as a cricketer to the cricket fraternity on his debut in IPL in the year 2013. Till then Pravin hadn’t even appeared in any first class matches for his city or state. But the first stage he performed was a ‘bigger’ stage!

The journey that Pravin had been through was never a bed of roses, he was amongst the probables for Mumbai’s Ranji team in 2000 but was unable to make the cut to it. Despite that, he played, played and played on.

His talent was recognized by the Rajasthan Royals and he got a breakthrough in the year 2013, under Rahul Dravid’s captaincy, when he debuted for the Royals against the Delhi Daredevils announcing him as the oldest Indian player to debut in IPL.

Pravin’s curve started taking off steep at the age where most players put a full stop. Within a year of his debut, Pravin became one of the attacking bowlers of the Royals and was instrumental in taking the Royals to the finals of the champions league as the leading wicket taker of the tournament by bagging 12 wickets in total.

Lessons to learn from Pravin Tambe’s journey

Hard work pays off assuredly

Pravin’s achievement is a clear inspiration that if we persevere with determination, success disguised as opportunities knocks at our door at the ‘right’ time. But the ‘right’ time may vary from person to person. For, Sachin Tendulkar, it was at 16 years and in the curious case of Pravin Tambe, it was at 41. Be it whatever, hard work pays off assuredly!

‘One more time’: The difference between quitting and winning

Had Pravin stopped trying or hung his boots a year before i.e., at his 40, all his years of cricketing that were acclaimed to be a fairy-tale would’ve been termed as a ‘valiant attempt’.

But he believed in himself even when not many would’ve and clearly anticipated the dawn even at the dark hours, which eventually came true in his life.

The difference between quitting and winning is that ‘little push’ on listening to that squeaky voice of “One more time” in our head that Pravin has been obliging to till date, even at the age of 49.

Success shouldn’t be an ending but a beginning to Glory

Even after debuting in IPL 2013 and succeeding remarkably in Champion’s league in the same year, Pravin never rested complacent, he kept pushing his limits. His cricket thirst was the thrust for his hat-trick in 2014.

Similarly, for all of us, success shouldn’t be an ending but a beginning to Glory and a thrust forward.

Year after year, Pravin Tambe was entering various halls of fame. He got his much-awaited Ranji call for Mumbai in 2013-2014 season subsequent to his IPL debut. He also made his List-A debut for Mumbai in Vijay Hazare trophy in 2016-2017 season. He went on to become the first Indian and the oldest player to debut in the Caribbean Premier League for Trinbago Knight Riders in 2020.

Passion not age, the driving factor for success

Pravin’s unquenched thirst for excellence and deep love for cricket is keeping him active in the pursuit of this wonderful game ignoring the age tag. He never lets age decide his success in cricket and plays with the same passion every time he steps on the field even now.

Similarly, for us, if we are passionate about something and keep pursuing it, age is nothing but just a number in front of it. We are often driven by the idea that ‘being successful at a certain age’ is a measure of achievement. Failing which, we think of ourselves as either being unsuccessful or we don’t have the ability to achieve something in life.

But the truth is: Age is merely a number that passion outweighs!!

For every one of us who thinks to quit, let’s listen to the Pravin Tambe in our head who squeaks “Ek aur bar karega”!! 

Pravin Tambe is like a wine that got fine with age, his passion for the game has more feathers to add on his cap yet!

~Dhinesh Babu (Guest Author)

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