CSK vs PBKS: 36-year-old Richard Gleeson Becomes Second-oldest Debutant in IPL History

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Wednesday scripted a new chapter in the history of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 as they took the field against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the Chepauk. The defending champions handed a debut to 36-year-old Richard Gleeson, making him the second-oldest IPL debutant in the tournament.

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Gleeson replaced Tushar Deshpande who was benched for being unwell. The England pacer surpassed former CSK spinner Imran Tahir to become the second oldest player to make an IPL debut. Punjab Kings’ Sikandar Raza is on the top of the list who made his debut just a few days before turning 37.

Oldest IPL debutants (since 2014)

Sikander Raza:36y 342d

Richard Gleeson: 36y151d

Imran Tahir: 35y 44d

Jalaj Saxena: 34y 124d

Keshav Maharaj: 34y 63d

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Gleeson has represented England in 6 T20Is and has picked 9 wickets at an average of 20.77. He made his international debut against India in 2022 in Birmingham. Overall, the right-arm quick has 101 wickets in 90 T20s, averaging 24.32.

PBKS opt to bowl at Chepauk

Ruturaj Gaikwad’s bad luck with tosses continued as he lost another one on Wednesday, to Punjab, and were asked to bat first. The CSK skipper admitted the challenge of defending totals in the presence of the dew but also mentioned their win against Sunrisers Hyderabad after batting first.

“We would have fielded first, but we weren’t exactly sure. Always tough defending here with a lot of dew, but the fact that we won by 78 runs (against SRH in the last match) shows a lot about the team,” Gaikwad said at the toss.

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“We’ll be missing out Pathirana and Tushar Deshpande today. Pathirana has a slight niggle, Deshpande isn’t well, so we’ve Shardul and Richard Gleeson makes his debut,” he added.

‘Have to Start Well and Take Early Wickets’

Punjab skipper Sam Curran said the team would like to make an impact with the ball and try to put pressure on the hosts.

“We’ll bowl first. Looks like a good surface, a new wicket and we’re excited after that last match. An amazing stadium and an amazing crowd, we’ll have to start well and take early wickets. We’ll take the confidence from that chase of 261. It’s just about fight and determination, they’re a good team, but we need to be brave. Same team for us,” Curran said after winning the toss.