CWC 2019: The youngest and oldest player from each team

Excitement about the World Cup has increased manifolds after the announcement of the squads of the ten participating teams. All the teams have tried their level best to get that perfect balance between youth and experience. While there is a lot of young exciting talent around, there are some veterans who can still win matches for their teams single-handedly.

Even though ODI and T20 cricket are known to be a young man's game, players like MS Dhoni, Chris Gayle and Imran Tahir have shown again and again that experience is extremely crucial in ODI cricket.

Apart from this, the fitness standards have improved drastically in the last few years and thus a 35-year-old player is more than capable of competing against a 25-year-old for a place in the side. Thus, age hasn't really been a criteria for selection in the World Cup squads. Here is a list of the youngest and oldest players from each team.

#10 Sri Lanka

Oldest player - Jeevan Mendis (Age - 36 years)

Jeevan Mendis was one of the many surprise inclusions in Sri Lanka's World Cup squad. Mendis last played an ODI for Sri Lanka in January 2015 but was named in the World Cup squad at the back of some impressive performances, both with the bat and ball, in Sri Lanka's domestic ODI tournament.

The all-rounder has played 54 matches in his ODI career in which he has scored 604 runs and picked up 28 wickets. Mendis will want to improve his record and contribute with the bat and ball for Sri Lanka.

Youngest player - Avishka Fernando (Age - 21 years)

Avishka Fernando has played 5 ODIs for Sri Lanka in which he has managed to score just 71 runs. However, the youngster has abundance of talent and thus the Sri Lankan selectors took the gamble of exposing him to the big stage.

#9 Bangladesh

Oldest player - Mashrafe Mortaza (Age - 35 years)

Mashrafe Mortaza will carry Bangladesh's hopes in World Cup 2019. Mortaza started his career as a promising fast bowler who bowled with pace and aggression. However, with time Mortaza's speed has gone down and he has relied more on accuracy than pace.

He has been brilliant as a captain for Bangladesh. Mortaza captained Bangladesh in the 2015 World Cup in Australia, where the team reached the quarter-final.

Youngest player - Mehidy Hasan (Age - 21 years)

Mehidy Hasan is one of the rising stars of Bangladesh cricket. The young off-spinner has played 22 matches so far and has impressed everyone with his temperament.

Apart from doing the difficult task of bowling in the poweplays, Hasan has scored some vital runs for the team batting down the order. Big things will be expected from the youngster at the World Cup.

#8 Afghanistan

Oldest player - Mohammad Nabi (Age - 34 years)

Mohammad Nabi has been instrumental in Afghanistan's meteoric rise in World cricket. The all-rounder has been extremely economical with the ball and has often strangled the batsmen for runs in the middle over.

Nabi has done the job with the bat too, hitting some lusty blows at the backend of the innings. His experience of playing in different T20 leagues will keep him in good stead in high pressure situations at the World Cup.

Youngest player - Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Age - 18 years)

Mujeeb Ur Rahman has achieved a lot in his short international cricket career. The young Afghan has played in T20 leagues in India and Australia and has performed reasonably well for his teams.

Mujeeb has got a bag full of tricks up his sleeve and has bamboozled some big names of international cricket. He, along with Rashid, will be a huge threat for the opposition teams.

#7 Pakistan

Oldest player - Mohammad Hafeez (Age - 38 years)

Mohammad Hafeez will be crucial to Pakistan's fragile looking batting line-up. The all-rounder has been around for a long time now. Hafeez, who made his debut way back in 2003, has played 204 ODIs for Pakistan.

He has batted at every position in the batting order but of late he has been batting in the middle order. Hafeez has had trouble with his bowling action and hasn't been used much with the ball by Pakistan.

Youngest player - Shaheen Afridi (Age - 19 years)

One of the biggest reasons for the omission of Mohammad Amir from Pakistan's World Cup squad is the rise of the young, talented fast bowlers like Shaheen Afridi.

There has never been shortage of fast bowling talents in Pakistan. Afridi has played just 10 ODIs in which he has picked up 19 wickets. He uses his height to good effect and the angle he creates being a left-hander makes it difficult for the batsman to face him.

#6 New Zealand

Oldest player - Ross Taylor (Age - 35 years)

Ross Taylor will be playing his 4th World Cup at the 2019 World Cup. The Kiwi star has been the backbone of New Zealand's batting for more than a decade now. Taylor will be extremely confident going into the mega-event.

He averaged 91.29 in the 11 ODIs he played in 2018. Taylor has begun 2019 with a bang too, scoring 593 runs at an outstanding average of 74.13. His recent form makes him a crucial player for the Black Caps.

Youngest player - Ish Sodhi (Age - 26 years)

The youngest New Zealand player, being 26, shows that the selectors haven't experimented too much with the squad.

Ish Sodhi will be the team's youngest player at the World Cup. Sodhi has made full use of the limited opportunities presented to him. The Indian origin cricketer will be keen to grab the opportunity of playing in the biggest tournament of world cricket.

#5 England

Oldest player - Liam Plunkett (34 years)

Liam Plunkett made his debut against Pakistan in 2005. After being in and out of the side for a couple of years, Plunkett was finally dropped in 2007. He did make a couple of comebacks after that but couldn't really get into the scheme of things for England.

However, since 2015 Plunkett has been pretty much an integral part of England's ODI team. He extracts extra bounce due to his height and has been used as an attacking option by skipper Eoin Morgan.

Youngest player - Jofra Archer (24 years)

After being left out of the provisional squad, Jofra Archer was named England's final 15 for World Cup 2019. Archer came into the side at the expense of David Willey. The Barbados born speedster will provide the much-needed impetus to England's fragile looking pace attack. Archer has been impressive in the various T20 competitions that he has played in different parts of the World. The 24-year-old will be wary of the fact that all eyes will be on how he goes about his business in the tournament where England will start as favourites.

#4 Australia

Oldest player - Shaun Marsh (Age - 35 years)

Shaun Marsh's international career has been a stop start affair. After making his debut in 2008, Marsh has been in and out of the side because of poor form or injuries. There were no doubts about Marsh's talent as a batsman, but unfortunately he hasn't been able to do justice to his talent.

However, in the last few years he has been able to feature in Australia's Test side. And after the ban on Steve Smith and David Warner, the Southpaw has been a regular in the ODI side as well.

His place in Australia's World Cup side seemed to be in jeopardy after a below par series against India. But he played some solid innings against Pakistan and sealed a place in the squad. Ironically, this will be Marsh's first World Cup appearance in his 11-year long career.

Youngest player - Pat Cummins (Age - 26 years)

Pat Cummins, who is Australia's in-form pacer, is going to be the team's youngest player in the World Cup. Cummin:s' initial years in international cricket were plagued with injuries. But he has found his feet in the last couple of years and is all set to be Australia's most potent weapon at the World Cup. Cummins was also part of Australia's World Cup winning squad of 2015.

#3 South Africa

Oldest player - Imran Tahir (Age - 40 years)

Imran Tahir's long cricket journey will come to an end in World Cup 2019. Tahir started his cricket career in Pakistan but found a permanent home in South Africa. He started his South African career in 2011 and has been sensational for the Proteas.

Tahir is arguably South Africa's best limited-overs spinner. He has played all around the world and has years of experience under his belt. The World Cup will be Tahir's career's swansong as he has announced retirement after the tournament. Tahir is the oldest player in the tournament.

Youngest player - Lungi Ngidi (Age - 23 years)

Fast bowling is going to be South Africa's biggest strength in the World Cup. An integral part of South Africa's pace battery is the 23-year-old Lungi Ngidi. The young pace sensation has been taking huge strides in international cricket in the last two years.

Despite the tough competition for a place in the pace attack, Ngidi has established himself as a regular in the Proteas lineup.

#2 West Indies

Oldest player - Chris Gayle (Age - 39 years)

The Universe Boss showed that age is just a number. Despite being 39, Christopher Henry Gayle is still going strong. He has been destroying bowling attacks for nearly two decades. A veteran of 289 ODIs, Gayle has over 10,000 ODI runs to his name.

Gayle's career looked as good as over because of his mediocre performance in the last couple of years. But the Jamaican single-handedly destroyed England's bowling attack in the ODI series played at home and then backed it up with a terrific show in the IPL making him a star attraction at the World Cup.

Youngest player - Oshane Thomas (22 years)

Oshane Thomas will be a fast bowler to watch out for at the World Cup. Thomas is a genuine fast bowler who has touched the 150 kph mark regularly.

In the series against India, Thomas troubled players like Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan. He has 15 ODI scalps to his name.

#1 India

Oldest player - MS Dhoni (Age - 37 years)

Despite having the class of Virat Kohli, belligerence of Rohit Sharma, accuracy of Jasprit Bumrah India's World Cup hopes will be pinned on the experience and cricketing acumen of Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

At the age of 37, Dhoni is one of the fittest players in world cricket. Apart from his unbelievable fitness level, Dhoni is the sharpest mind behind the stumps. There have been questions about Dhoni's skills as a finisher, but in the last few months he has played some match winning innings for team India. Kohli will look up to Dhoni for crucial decisions both on and off the field.

Youngest player - Kuldeep Yadav (Age - 24 years)

Kuldeep Yadav has been a great find for team India and has a fabulous ODI record to his name. In 43 ODI matches for team India, Kuldeep has picked up 86 wickets at an average of 21.14.

Batsmen all over the world have found it difficult to pick Kuldeep. And even though he is having a below par IPL, he will be Kohli's main weapon in the World Cup.

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