Rahul Dravid on Monday turned 48 and social media was flooded with birthday wishes for the former India skipper, both from fans and former cricketers.
Dravid, widely regarded as a Test specialist, had a fantastic career in both ODIs and Tests as he finished his career with over 10,000 runs each in both formats. He played 164 Tests, 344 ODIs and 1 T20I in which he scored 13288, 10889 and 31 runs respectively.
Dravid, regarded as one of the finest batsmen ever to grace the game, holds the record for facing the maximum number of balls by a batsman in Test cricket. He faced a total of 31,258 deliveries, an average of 190.6 balls per Test match across his career.
VVS Laxman, who shared some memorable partnerships with 'The Wall', took to Twitter to send his "warm wishes to a special friend". "Warm birthday wishes to a special friend with whom I shared a lot of wonderful memories and who continues to inspire us. Wishing you a very special birthday and a wonderful year ahead Rahul," Laxman said.
"Wishing a great man and a great birthday Rahul Dravid," tweeted Irfan Pathan.
"Kehte hain Deewaaron ke bhi kaan hote hain. Yeh deewar ke kaan toh hain hi jo sabko achhe se sunte hain, balki bahut saaf hriday aur mann bhi hai. When we had the Wall, we had it All. Happy Birthday Rahul Dravid , wish you fulfillment in all that you do," wished Virender Sehwag in his typical, witty style.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) put out some interesting stats about Dravid and tweeted: "More than 10,000 runs in Tests and ODIs, 194 fifty-plus scores, most Test catches by a non-wicketkeeper, most balls faced in Test cricket, only player to be involved in two 300-plus ODI partnerships. Happy birthday to the incredible Rahul Dravid."
"Wishing Rahul Dravid - former India captain & one of the finest batsmen to have ever graced the game - a very happy birthday," tweeted BCCI. Cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle also passed his birthday wishes to the batting great. "A very happy birthday to Rahul Dravid. Good day to have you batting!" Bhogle wrote.
Dravid was named the ICC Cricketer of the Year in 2004. The former India captain, who currently heads the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru, was bestowed with the Arjuna award in 1998, while he received the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan in 2004 and 2013 respectively. He currently is heading the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru.
(With inputs from IANS)
