New Delhi, March 12, 2026: The prestigious Colonel C. K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) gives to former India captain-head coach Rahul Dravid will be awarded at its annual BCCI Naman Awards ceremony that will be held in New Delhi, on March 15, 2026. The award is given in honour of the outstanding contribution made by Dravid to the Indian cricket both as a player and a mentor.
The highest award that BCCI accords to former cricketers is the Colonel C. K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award, which is awarded to former cricketers to honor their long-term contribution to the sport. Since 1994, the award named after C. K. Nayudu, the first captain of the Indian team at a Test match, has been offered as a tribute to those whose contribution to the sport in the country has been extraordinary.
A Technical genius and a tough guy at the crease, Dravid is considered to be one of the best batters in the history of the game as he is famously called The Wall. His 509 match international career, spanning 16 years, 1996 to 2012, as a representative of India in all forms, earned him over 24000 international runs. Among his notable successes are his 13,000 plus Test cricket and almost 11,000 plus One Day Internation in which he scored dozens of centuries and half-centuries.
In his youthful days, Dravid was part of the famous Big Four batting team in India that comprised of Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman. He was among the most reliable in international cricket due to his capability to anchor innings over long durations and also play match saving roles.
After retiring out of international cricket in 2012, Dravid shifted his mentoring and coaching services to the Indian cricket system. His first assignment was with India A and Under-19 wherein he helped with the growth of young talent. India, under his guidance, became champions of the Under-19 Cricket World Cup in 2018, which was a tournament of a future national team star.
In 2021, Dravid replaced Ravi Shastri as the head coach of Indian senior men team. The Indian team under him made it to the final of the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup and then won the ICC Men T20 world cup in 2024. The victory achieved by India broke an 11 year trophy drought by the Indian team in the ICC and also enhanced the image of Dravid as a winning coach in international cricket.
The awards ceremony known as the Naman Awards will honour some of the great people in the Indian cricket this year. Also among others expected to get the lifetime honours on their contributions to the sport are former administrator and cricketer, Roger Binny as well as former India women captain Mithali Raj.
Besides the lifetime recognition category, the Polly Umrigar Award of the International Cricketer of the Year will be presented to current Indian batter Shubman Gill in reference to his performances in the last few seasons. Gill has been instrumental in the Indian batting set up in all formats of the game and has come up with a number of noteworthy performances in the international competition.
The Naman Awards are an annual award owned by the BCCI and named in honour of Naman since the mid-2000s to recognise the best in Indian cricket both on international and domestic levels. The ceremony honours the exceptional individuals in the sport, the administrators and those who have contributed to the sport, and their achievements in the last season.
The 2026 edition of the awards would also mark a very successful spell in the Indian cricket. In the last 12 months, several Indian squads have won key international titles in international events and in this connection, BCCI considers the event to be a golden year of the sport in the nation.
The fact that Dravid received the CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award is an indication of his long-term impact in the Indian cricketing scene, whether during his time as one of the most technically skilled batters in the world, or as the one who influenced the new generation of players.