NEW YORK -- When 55-year-old banking executive Vijay Parimoo told his friends he would be a rookie ball boy at this years U.S. Open, he expected, and got, a little teasing.They were like, `Isnt there an age limit? Shouldnt there be? he said.But the U.S. Open has indeed never put an upper limit on the age of its ball chasers, which tournament officials say sets Flushing Meadows apart from the other Grand Slams. Of the 275 ball people this year -- all of whom had to make it through grueling tryouts -- about 75 are 18 or older and more than 20 of those are over 30. Several are in their 50s. One who gave it up a couple of years ago was 63.Top players who make it their habit to thank the ball boys and ball girls in their victory speeches on tour have been seen giving double-takes when handed a ball or towel by grownups.I see many adults, says No. 1-ranked defending champion Novak Djokovic. I dont know if all of them are adults, but theyre doing their job very well.While the very idea of ball men and ball women has been lampooned over the years -- most notably on TVs Seinfeld when Kramer finds a way to bungle the great ball man experiment -- its a point of pride for the hardy few who have actually done one of the most coveted minimum-wage jobs in sports. And U.S. Open officials say there are plenty of wrinkles, so to speak, at this particular Grand Slam that make older ball people a sensible choice.For one, the two-week U.S. Open normally straddles the Labor Day weekend, when the school year kicks in and labor laws prevent kids from working extended hours, especially at night.The older ballpersons are gold in the night matches, says Cathie Delaney, a U.S. Tennis Association pro who manages the day-to-day court assignments for ball people who can be as young as 14. Some of these matches go until 2 a.m. We cant have a 14-year-old on the subway at 2 a.m.And then theres the U.S. Opens distinction of being the only major in which the ball persons move the balls around the court by throwing them rather than rolling them, which on changeovers can mean 80-foot, baseball-like guns from one end of the court to the other. Over the three weeks of work -- through the qualifying rounds, the main draws, junior, college and wheelchair events -- all that throwing can take a toll on young arms.Former college baseball player Yitz Liberman answered the call several years ago, not out of a particular devotion to tennis but because he knew he had a rocket arm. Now, the 34-year-old adjunct professor of Judaic studies at Yeshiva University has worked his way up to the position of crew chief in some of the top matches in Arthur Ashe Stadium.Theres a lot going on around you. Its my job to keep everyone focused and everyone in line, says Liberman, who high-fived his mostly teenage crew when they were assigned Venus Williams match in front of more than 23,000 fans.Dressed in identical blue uniforms, the six-person crew marches on and off the court like soldiers. In a choreographed flourish, they fan out onto the court to their assigned spots, the runners at the net who scamper for loose balls, and the throwers at the end who bounce the balls to the players and handle their sweaty towels.Tina Taps, who has been in charge of the ball persons since 1989, says she doesnt care about age, only a love of the tennis and the ability to make it through tryouts, which involve sprints, agility drills and throwing competitions. Each summer, about 400 people try out for just 80 rookie spots.Its a hard job, she said. More mature ball persons can deal with the heat and the various things that occur on the court and can teach the younger ones to persevere.One of those vets is Laray Fowler, a 32-year-old sales associate from Great Neck who has worked every U.S. Open since she was 14. She specializes in knowing and anticipating the on-court likes, dislikes and nuances of some of the games biggest stars, including Serena Williams.Its kind of like I know what she wants without her even having to ask, says Fowler, who, for reasons that have never been explained to her, ends up getting assigned to just about every Serena match.So will there ever come a day Fowler will give up being a ball person? No way, she says. Im going to do this until I cant walk anymore.For Parimoo, the 55-year-old rookie from Warren, New Jersey, taking his place on court is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. It began in his native India when he watched Jimmy Connors, Chris Evert and Bjorn Borg at the Open on television and noticed the youngsters chasing the balls across the court. What do these kids have to do to be in this tournament? he wondered. They must be super smart or special.When his 15-year-old son, Shray, tried out this summer, he took his dad with him. Amazingly, they both made it.In one of his first assignments, Parimoo handled the towel in a doubles match for one of his idols, Martina Hingis. But his biggest honor came this week when he was assigned to work as part of the same crew with his son.It reminded him once again of the biggest advantage he has over younger ball people: perspective.This is a privilege, he says. I enjoy every minute I am here. I may not be able to do it tomorrow. 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Aasif Karim Brett Lee had a hat-trick. Kenya limped to 174. Adam Gilchrist hit a ball out of Durban. Me and my mates enjoyed the Durban sun at the 2003 World Cup and got drunk. It was Australia in their glory years.Then a 39-year-old Kenyan came on to bowl. The crowd had lost interest. The left-arm spinner had first played for Kenya 23 years earlier. He got Ricky Ponting. He had captained the Kenyan Davis Cup team. He got Darren Lehmann. This was his third World Cup. He got Brad Hogg. In his penultimate game against the best team on earth, the old man had 2-2-0-3.His 13th ball was picked for a single. So was his 19th. They were the only two runs in his first eight overs. Every dot ball sobered Australian fans. Andrew Symonds and Ian Harvey shut up shop against Karim. At the end of every over there was laughter at Australia and cheers for Karim.Karims last two balls went for five. His figures were 8.2-6-7-3. Australia scored 171 for 2 in 23 overs against everyone else. Australia smashed Wasim and handled Murali. Karim stopped them.Pravin Tambe T20 is for glamour and bling. Its for Chris Gayle to go viral; for Virat Kohli to thank his sponsors; for SRK to wear golden pads in music videos; for rich Indian families to milk. It is not for 42-year-old nobodies to take hat-tricks.Pravin Tambe, hes a true legspinner. He spent years working out what legspin is, getting better and better, far away from crowds and contracts. Then he got the call and tossed it up. If you are over 40 and playing in the IPL, getting hit for six by Kieron Pollard is nothing. You have spent your whole life being hit for six. Now you get paid for it. You might as well toss it up.Tambes success is what middle-aged legspinners the world over needed. One of them getting paid a tasty salary, hanging out with Bollywood royalty and giving the ball a rip. If you are a leggie like me, every time Tambe takes the ball, your wrist starts to itch.John Davison I was in an electrical goods store in Harlem in March 2003. My friend was up against a radio, listening and smiling. It was in that dodgy store that three Aussie backpackers on their way to the World Cup heard that John Davison had made 111 off 76 balls for Canada.We all knew who Davison was. He wasnt some random Canadian cricketer to us. We were all Victorians, and if you were a keen Shield cricket fan, you knew Davison was Victorias 12th man. And an occasional offspinner.When he did bowl, it was rarely good news. Wickets were not his thing; stopping batsmen playing shots was. Most of my memoriees were of Davison not playing but walking around the MCG with a swagger that seemed odd for a non-playing, boring offspinner.dddddddddddd Guns out, shades on, attitude aplenty.That day I found out why he was so damn confident. Davison took ten wickets at 19 in that tournament and made 226 runs at a strike rate of 119. The swagger was justified. Colin Miller My first memory of Colin Miller was of him as a medium-pacer for Tasmania against Victoria. That was after he had played for Victoria and South Australia, and no one in Victoria claimed ownership over him back then. No one in Australia cared for medium-pacers.Then he had an injury in a club match. He bowled some offspin. Then he played for Tasmania and bowled seam with the new ball and offspin with the old. It was quick offspin from a canny old seamer. Many club cricketers turn from quicks to spinners when they get old. Miller had done it in first-class cricket. He did it so well that in 1997-98 he broke Chuck Fleetwood-Smiths 63-year-old record for the most wickets in a Shield season.The trick worked for Australia too. In 18 Tests he averaged 26 with the ball. In one of the greatest teams of all time it was the middle-aged seamer who won the Test Player of the Year.In Footscray, Millers Melbourne club, there are two ovals named after local legends. Merv Hughes has the main one, Tony Dodemaide the shabby one across the road. Miller has a better Test average than both.Bryce McGain I had followed/stalked Bryce McGain since his recall to Victoria as a 34-year-old. No one thought he would make it. Not in his teens, when he didnt play representative cricket. Not in his 20s, when he played as much in his club 2nds as firsts. And not in his 30s, when he got his game right and somehow played for Victoria.Shane Warne had retired. Stuart MacGill would too. Then Brad Hogg. Australia tried Beau Casson, Cameron White, Nathan Hauritz, Marcus North and Jason Krejza. Then they tried Bryce, who learnt his trade watching super slo-mo close-ups of the worlds best spinners; who wouldnt drink while researching his craft; who needed permission to leave work early for training. The guy was now an Australian cricketer.Bryce was massacred. When a six is hit off a spinner in Cape Town, they say you can still hear Bryce screaming. It was one of the worst Test debuts. Bryce didnt care. He even thought he could get back. There is something about Bryce. ' ' '