Kent all-rounder Darren Stevens starred on England Over-40 debut against Wales Over-40 this week.
Stevens hit 72 from 48 deliveries in England Over-40’s final total of 293 for four in 45 overs. Stevens did not bowl during Wales’ response of 201 for five in 45 overs. England Over-40 won the one-off fixture by 92 runs.
The 47-year-old Stevens has been capped 326 times in first-class cricket – and has not formally retired from professional cricket.
“I’ve still got the bit between my teeth. I still love the challenges. It comes down to desire, desire to keep competing and keep challenging myself each year,” said Stevens recently.
“If I say to you now, ‘I’m finishing at the end of the year’, my body will shut down because it will know it’s coming to an end. Whereas in my mind I’m like, ‘No, no, no, I’m still playing in 2023‘, and that’s how I look at it.
“I ask them all the time: ‘When do you know? How do you know? I just want to keep playing.’ And they say, ‘You don’t know yet. You keep playing.’ They all say you’ll know when you know. At the minute, I’ve not got that at all. I’ve thought about it, but then I’m like, ‘I’m loving this.'”