India batsman Rahul Dravid [Images] hailed Sunil Gavaskar [Images] as a huge inspiration for himself and his generation of cricketers after releasing the biography on the cricket legend -- "SMG" -- in Mumbai [Images] on Saturday.

"Gavaskar had always been a benchmark for all of us. He's inspired a whole generation of our cricketers," Dravid said at the Cricket Club of India (CCI) after launching the book penned by Devendra Prabhudesai.

Dravid said Gavaskar still continues to inspire with his leadership qualities even after his cricket career through his stint as a commentator on television and the roles he had taken up with the International Cricket Council [Images] (ICC [Images]) and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

"It's a dream to release the book on my childhood hero," said the Test middle order stalwart.

Recalling how his father had presented to him Gavaskar's own book 'Sunny Days' when he was a nine or ten-year-old boy, Dravid said he had since then been truly inspired by it.

"I want him to write another book to follow Sunny Days, Idols and Runs and Ruins," he added.