These old warhorses defied age in IPL 2026
What's the story
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season has come to a thrilling conclusion. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) made history by winning their second consecutive title after defeating Gujarat Titans in the final at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium. While the league saw several emerging talents, some old warhorses also made a mark. On this note, we look at the players who defied age with their brilliant run this season.
#1
Virat Kohli - RCB
The 37-year-old Virat Kohli enjoyed a dream run in IPL 2026. Having retired from T20Is almost two years back, Kohli finished with 675 runs at an average of 56.25 and a strike rate of 165.84. He went past the 50-run mark six times, including a hundred. In the high-voltage final against Gujarat Titans, Kohli opened the innings for RCB and scored an unbeaten 75 runs off 42 balls. This was the fourth successive season of Kohli recording 600-plus runs.
#2
Bhuvneshwar Kumar - RCB
Kohli's RCB teammate Bhuvneshwar Kumar was bound to feature on this list. The 36-year-old was arguably the MVP for his season, as he bowled one sensational spell after another. Bhuvneshwar claimed a total of 28 wickets from 16 games this season. His economy rate of 7.95 was the second-best for any pacer this year. Bhuvneshwar narrowly missed out on his third Purple Cap, as GT's Kagiso Rabada recorded 29 scalps.
#3
Ravindra Jadeja - RR
Though Ravindra Jadeja's IPL 2026 did not bag a lot of headlines, he was the unsung hero of Rajasthan Royals. The 37-year-old southpaw was consistent with the bat while operating lower down the order, having smashed 266 runs from 11 innings at an average of 66.50. His strike rate was also a decent 135.02. With his left-arm spin, Jadeja claimed 10 wickets at a decent economy of 8.39.
#4
Sunil Narine - KKR
Kolkata Knight Riders's evergreen Sunil Narine enjoyed another tremendous season with the ball. The mystery spinner took 15 wickets across 13 games, as he was the only bowler with a sub-seven economy rate (6.65). Having turned 38 during this season, Narine is showing no signs of slowing down. Having participated in 15 IPL editions, the West Indies legend is yet to record a season economy of 8 or more.