Sunil Gavaskar was deeply touched by the efforts of spin legend Shane Warne, who auctioned his baggy green cap towards the bushfire relief in Australia and urged fans as well as the Indian cricket establishment to also make whatever donation possible in helping save the victims of the tragedy. 

Gavaskar immediately donated $5000 to the Australian Red Cross which is raising funds for the fire victims. 

Read Also: Shane Warne and Ricky Ponting to lead teams in charity "Bush fire Cricket Bash" game 

"I read about Warne’s appeal in a newspaper. I had been troubled by the loss of life and property and the damage to the environment (there)," the legendary cricketer told TOI. "Since I have lots of friends in Australia, I wanted to show (my) solidarity in their efforts to control the fires and save lives and property… hence the humble contribution (from me). Besides I have an enduring connection with Australia due to the Border-Gavaskar Trophy."

Gavaskar, as he himself says, has a long relationship with Australia, a country he has been visiting since 1971 when he first went there as part of a World XI side that faced the Aussies. 

The 70-year-old batsman, skipper turned commentator travelled down under as an Indian team member for a decade post the 1976 tour and then first came back for duties behind the mic six years later during the 1991-92 series. 

Since 1996, all India-Australia Test series have been played for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy; the one half dedicated to the former Australia captain Allan Border. 

One can only hope that more big names from Indian cricket will donate a sum towards this cause of saving people's lives. 

(Inputs from TOI)