Anil Kumble turned 50 on Saturday, and wishes poured in from the cricket fraternity and fans on his birthday. The former India captain is currently in United Arab Emirates (UAE) with Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) for the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020, as their head coach and Director of Cricket Operations. India and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli took to Twitter to lead the wishes, writing, "Wish you a very happy birthday Anil Bhai @anilkumble1074. Have a great day."
Former teammate Yuvraj Singh also took to Twitter to pass on his birthday wishes. He wrote, "To someone who motivated me when I needed to hear it the most - Happy Birthday jumbo @anilkumble1074 your contribution towards Indian cricket and more so towards nurturing the youngsters has been priceless. Sending you all my love and good wishes on your half century".
Virender Sehwagl also wished the spin legend, saying, "Officially I had 136 Intern'tnl wickets, but unofficially had one which was costliest,when I asked @anilkumble1074 bhai to not do tuktuk to offspinner & score his century quickly and he got out on 87. Sorry Anil Bhai, but congratulations on the half century today. Happy Birthday".
The likes of Gautam Gambhir, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and fans also passed on their wishes.
Kumble grabbed 619 wickets in Test cricket and is the only Indian bowler to do so. He is also the second bowler in cricket history in the Test format, to take 10 wickets in an innings.
The former India captain is also the third highest wicket-taker in Test cricket. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2005 and announced his retirement from international cricket in 2008.