"Petition for IPL to give him lifetime royalties" - Twitterati shower wishes as Brendon McCullum turns 41

It goes without saying that Brendon McCullum is one of the biggest names to have graced the sport. Considered to be well ahead of his time, the swashbuckling wicketkeeper-batter is undoubtedly one of the greatest to have represented New Zealand.

Aside from his belligerent batting approach, McCullum was instrumental in leading the Blackcaps to the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2015. An aggressive brand of cricket became the norm under his leadership across formats.

He is also renowned for setting the IPL ablaze on its opening night in 2008, blasting an unbeaten 158 off just 73 deliveries to mark the arrival of the marquee league.

As 'Baz' turned 42, his fans and former teammates took to Twitter to shower their wishes upon the current England Test coach. Here's a compilation of the same:

Brendon McCullum holds the record for the fastest Test century

McCullum was never averse to breaking records and became the first cricketer to play 100 Tests without missing a single one since his debut. He played a total of 101 Tests, 260 ODIs and 71 T20Is for the Blackcaps, with his final appearance coming in 2016.

He scored the fastest Test hundred off just 54 deliveries against Australia in Christchurch in what turned out to be his final international game. The Kiwi skipper broke the record jointly held by Sir Vivian Richards and Misbah-ul-Haq, who scored theirs off 56 deliveries.

McCullum is currently the head coach of the England men's Test cricket team. Under his tutelage, England enjoyed a successful home summer, winning 6 of their 7 Tests against New Zealand, India and South Africa.

He represented Kolkata Knight Riders, Kochi Tuskers Kerala, Chennai Super Kings, Gujarat Lions and Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL. While his last appearance in the league as a player came in 2018, he coached the Knight Riders for three seasons from 2020,before quitting to take over the England job.

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Sooryanarayanan started off as a non-contracted text commentator at Sportskeeda 3 years ago and is today, the Cricket Commentary Manager. An MBA degree holder, a burning passion for the sport eventually led him to take it up professionally. He also writes insightful Feature pieces from time to time.

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