ICC lists Rahul Dravid as a left-handed batsman in their Hall of Fame page on website

From orchestrating the greatest of comebacks to helping his country scale unchartered territories in cricket; from defying the odds under the direst of circumstances to being a team man: one who would go and assume any role for the betterment of his team and his nation, Rahul Sharad Dravid is one of the legends of the game. Nicknamed ‘The Wall’ for his steely composure and a never-say-die spirit, he is also the fifth Indian to be inducted in the ICC Hall of Fame- a select group of cricketers [male/female] who have left their imprints on this beautiful game forever.

Started in 2009, the ICC Hall of Fame is an attempt to celebrate the achievements of a select group of special individuals, who have an everlasting legacy on this game. In 2018, the ICC decided to commemorate former Indian captain Rahul Dravid in their Hall of Fame, making him the fifth Indian cricketer to enter the coveted club. But, in what comes as a major goof-up, the world governing body listed Rahul Dravid as a left-handed batsman in their Hall of Fame page on its website.

“BATTING: LEFT HAND” read Dravid’s section of the Hall of fame, as ICC drew the irk of the social media and the fans. Rahul Dravid, who featured in 164 Tests and 344 ODIs and accumulated a total of 24,177 runs across formats, was the first Indian captain to register a Test series in West Indies [1-0 in 2006], England [1-0 in 2007] after 35 years and 21 years respectively. Under Dravid, India also registered their maiden Test win on South African soil when they defeated the Proteas by 123 runs in 2006-07.

Alongside Dravid, former Australian World Cup-winning skipper Ricky Ponting and the stalwart of English Women cricket Clair Taylor were also inducted in the Hall of Fame during the ICC Annual Conference in Dublin in July l2018. To mark the coveted occasion, Dravid had received his commemorative cap from fellow Hall of Famer and former Indian skipper Sunil Gavaskar during the fifth ODI between India and the West Indies in Thiruvanthapuram.

What is the eligibility for induction in the Hall of Fame and who are the other Indians on the list?

The ICC Hall of Fame was devised back in the year 2009 with the objective to commemorate the very best this beautiful game has seen. For a player to be nominated in the select list of cricketers, he should be retired from the game for at least five years. Both Rahul Dravid and Ricky Ponting retired in 2012 and hence as soon as their cooling period of five years was over, they were immediately inducted in what is their rightful place.

This year, Sachin Tendulkar became the sixth Indian cricketer to be inducted in the Hall of Fame. The Little Master had retired from the game back in 2013 and thus had become eligible to be nominated alongside his compatriots in Sunil Gavaskar [2009], Bishan Singh Bedi [2009], Kapil Dev [2009], Anil Kumble [2015] and Rahul Dravid [2018].

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