Dravid inaugurates Daredevils Corporate Cup

New Delhi, Oct 22 (IANS) Legendary batsman Rahul Dravid on Saturday inaugurated the third edition of the Daredevils Corporate Cup T20 cricket tournament.

The tournament is for the executives working in the corporate sector and 24 teams from the leading companies are participating in the amateur tournament, according to a release.

The 24 teams will be divided into eight pools, will play amongst themselves to qualify for the semi-finals. The final will be held in November, the date for which hasn't been disclosed.

Speaking on the occasion, Indian Premier League (IPL) side Delhi Daredevils' mentor Dravid said: "The Corporate Cup tournament is a noble idea considering the stressed work life of corporate this will give an opportunity to motivate them for healthy and balanced life cycle."

"To the audience, it is a treat to see the hidden skills to these cricketers and further boost their moral."

A veteran of the game, Rahul Dravid had amassed 13288 runs at an average of 52.31 from 164 Test matches for India during an illustrious career that lasted for 16 years. In the shorter format of the game too, Dravid’s record was no less spectacular, as he scored 10889 runs from 334 ODIs at an average of 39.16

The 43-year-old has 36 Test centuries and 12 ODI centuries to his name, while he has scored 63 fifties in Tests and 83 half-centuries in ODIs.

His international career set aside, the legend’s T20 records too are startling, especially for a batsman tailor-made for Test cricket, as he has 2586 runs from 109 games at 27.51 and has scored 13 fifties in the format.

Dravid made his debut as a 23-year-old at Lord’s, England during India’s 1996 tour to England and shared his debut with another Indian stalwart and one of the greatest captains in world cricket, Sourav Ganguly.

The Karnataka-born cricketer called it quits in the year 2012 after India returned from a shambolic tour to Australia, wherein the Asian giants were whitewashed 4-0 by the Aussies.