Happy Birthday Rahul Dravid: “The Wall” turns 49

Rahul Dravid, the 49-year-old former Indian cricketer who is now the team’s head coach, is celebrating his 49th birthday.

Some interesting facts about Rahul Dravid

• Dravid was born in the city of Indore, Madhya Pradesh, on January 11, 1973.
• His native language is Marathi.
• Dravid began playing cricket when he was 12 years old.
• At the Under-15, Under-17, and Under-19 levels, he represented Karnataka.
• Dravid is the only player in history to retire from his first match.
• In 2011, Dravid made his T20 debut against England and then retired from the format in the same match.

• Dravid,commanded the Indian team for 16 years.
• The Wall, The Great Wall, and Jamie Mr. Dependable are some of the nicknames of the Indian icon in the sports world. Dravid made his first appearance for India in an ODI against Sri Lanka in Singapore. In this match, he batted at number four and scored three runs in four balls.
• Rahul was also the captain of the Indian team in 2005. In 25 Test matches, he was the captain of the Indian side. During this time, Team India had to win eight games and lose six games. Aside from that, 11 test matches ended in a tie.

• Apart from Tests, he captained the Indian team in 79 One-Day Internationals (ODIs) between 2000 and 2007. During this time, the Indian squad had to win 42 games while losing 33. Aside from that, none of the four matches achieved a result.
• In the year 2000, Dravid was one of the five Wisden cricketers. At the inaugural award presentation in 2004, he received the ICC Player of the Year and Test Player of the Year honors.
• Dravid’s name is associate with numerous records in cricket. He is the fourth player in the world to score the most runs in the Test format, which is a unique distinction among these records. At the same time, the Indian squad is ranked second in the Test format in terms of most runs scored.
• Dravid represented India in 164 Test matches, scoring 13288 runs in 286 innings at an average of 52.3.

• In Test cricket, he has 36 hundred and 63 half-centuries to his record.
• Apart from that, he has played 344 ODI matches for India, scoring 10889 runs in 318 innings at an average of 39.2 runs per innings. During this time, Dravid’s bat has scored 12 centuries and 83 half-centuries.
• In addition to these two types of cricket, he has also represented India in the shortest format. During this time, he has scored 31 runs with a strike rate of 147.6.
• Dravid is the world’s first and only batsman to score a century against a team that has played all ten Test matches. Aside from that, he is the first cricketer in history to take the most catches in Test cricket. With 210 catches, Dravid holds the record for most catches in Test cricket.

Awards given to Rahul Dravid

• In 1998, he was awarded the Arjuna Award for his achievements in cricket.
• Padma Shri, India’s fourth highest civilian award, was awarded in 2004.
• Padma Bhushan, India’s third highest civilian honour, was given in 2013.
• CEAT International Cricketer of the World Cup,1999
• Dravid was named Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2000.

• ICC Cricketer of the Year, 2004 – The highest award in the ICC Rankings.
• ICC Test Player of the Year and ICC Cricketer of the Year, both in 2004.
• MTV’s Youth Icon of the Year for 2004.
• NDTV Indian of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award with Dev Anand in 2011.
• The Don Bradman Award with Glenn McGrath in 2012.
• Wisden India’s Highest-Impact Test Batsman in 2015.
• ICC Hall of Fame in 2018.