Former captain and batting great Rahul Dravid, who is now grooming the Indian colts as coach, turned 44 today and good wishes poured in for the iconic player on the social media.
Dravid's name was among the trending topics on Twitter with celebrities and fans offering good wishes to the batsman, who was nicknamed 'The Wall' for his stoic defence and reliability at the crucial No.3 position.
"Happy Birthday Rahul Bhai. Thank you for your encouragement & for being a great role model for all the budding cricketers out there," wrote current Indian skipper Virat Kohli.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) also lauded his contribution to cricket in its birthday wishes.
"He was one of cricket's greatest batsmen, with 24,208 international runs, the 6th highest of all time. Happy 44th Birthday to Rahul Dravid!" the world body said on its official twitter page.
Sports Minister Vijay Goel was also among those who wished Dravid.
"True gentleman & GREAT WALL of #Indian #cricket Wishing #RahulDravid a very Happy Birthday. DID YOU KNOW once he took 2 wickets in 2 balls!" he tweeted.
Rather cheeky birthday wishes were offered by Dravid's contemporary and one-time teammate Virender Sehwag.
"He played in the V. But was the biggest C. Commitment, Class,Consistency,Care. Proud to have played together. Happy Birthday #RahulDravid," Sehwag tweeted.
Former BCCI President Anurag Thakur, who had to step down following the Supreme Court order on Lodha Committee recommendations, was not to be left behind either.
"Happy Birthday #RahulDravid ! A legend who's transformed the U-19 team & one of the finest cricketers the world hs ever seen!" he said.
Dravid amassed 13,288 runs and 36 centuries in his 164 Test career. He was the captain of the Indian team from 2003 to 2007.
In 344 ODI matches, Dravid notched up 10889 runs which included 12 hundreds and 83 fifties.
He was part of the legendary 'Fab-Five' in Indian cricket, also comprising Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, and Sourav Ganguly.
He is currently coach of both the India A and Under-19 teams.
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