Kapil Dev along with fellow India cricketer Murali Karthik, both avid golfers, will swing golf clubs for charity – Champions For A Casue – as action is set to return to the Delhi Golf Club.
The 1983 Cricket World Cup champion captain Kapil and former India spinner Karthik will join pro golfers Gaganjeet Bhullar and Shubhankar Sharma in a fund-raiser event for causes to fight the COVID-19 virus, which has infected over 2.75 lakh people in India and claimed around 7,750 human lives.
The event, aiming to raise ₹ 1 crore, is slated at the Delhi Golf Club on the match-play format over 18 holes between the two teams, according to a report by teetimetales.com.
Last month, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson along with former American football superstars Tom Brady and Payton Manning had generated $ 20 million from a televised charity game for fight against COVID-19.
“When the country is facing such challenges, it is our duty to do whatever little we can to help. “It (Champions For A Cause) is a great initiative and as a sportsman it also gives me the added thrill of competing with the best pro golfers in the country,” said Kapil Dev, who will partner nine-time Asian Tour winner Bhullar.
“It is wonderful that cricket and golf are getting together for this noble cause,” said Bhullar. “Both cricket and golf have over decades relied heavily on building communities around their sport in their own ways. If ever there was a need to rebuild communities, it is now and just feel blessed to be able to contribute,” he added.
Karthik will team up with Sharma. However, the participation of the latter is still not 100% sure ahead of the British Masters the following week. The former Asian Tour Order of Merit topper and 2018 European Tour Rookie of the Year is waiting for clarification on UK quarantine rules as he is keen to play the European Tour event.
Magic Bus India Foundation, which works to raise funds for under-privileged children, has joined the “Champions” for the COVID-19 relief charity.
The tournament will follow the standard operating procedures issued by the Government to open sports facilities in the country.
The ‘Champions for a Cause-Charity Golf Match’ will also feature a set of on-course challenges to raise additional charitable funds.
Chennai-based golf administrator Dilip Thomas is the lead donor for the event which is being managed and marketed by Rishi Narain Sports Marketing.