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Hyderabad, October 31 (IANS) Former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin started a new innings in his political career as he took oath as a cabinet minister in Telangana on Friday.
The 62-year-old has come a long way since making a sensational and record-breaking debut with three consecutive centuries against England in 1984-85. He remains the first and only player to score a century in each of his first three Tests.
Born on February 8, 1963 in Hyderabad, Azharuddin took up cricket during his school days at All Saints. In his own words, it was his uncle Mir Zainulabidin who gave him a cricket bat for the first time.
Azharuddin once said, “I am grateful to him for introducing me to the passion that has shaped me and my entire life.”
Popularly known as ‘Ajju Bhai’ on the cricket field, he graduated from Nizam College with a Bachelor of Commerce degree.
His career reached its peak when he was made the captain of the Indian team in 1989 and made his mark as one of the most successful captains.
However, Azharuddin’s cricket career came to an abrupt end in 2000 after he was banned for life from playing the game for alleged involvement in match-fixing.
After a long legal battle, the Andhra Pradesh High Court lifted the lifetime ban in 2012. However, the order came too late for Azhar to resume his career as he was already 49 years old.
The batsman played 99 Tests and scored 6,215 runs including 22 centuries. He also played 334 ODI matches and scored 9,378 runs.
He entered politics by joining the Congress Party in 2009 and was elected to the Lok Sabha from Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh in the same year. However, he lost the election from Tonk-Sawai Madhopur constituency of Rajasthan in 2014.
In 2018, he was appointed as the working president of Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC). He also campaigned for the party in the 2018 assembly elections.
When Azhar was elected president of the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) in 2019, he tried to start a new innings by entering cricket administration. However, his tenure was marked by infighting and allegations of corruption.
The Supreme Court intervened by naming a one-member committee to manage the HCA and facilitate holding of new elections in 2023. The committee removed the former cricketer from the voters’ list and barred him from contesting the HCA elections.
On the complaint of an HCA official, four criminal cases were registered against Azhar and others for alleged misappropriation of funds. However, the former cricketer termed the allegations as false and motivated.
In 2023, Azhar will contest from Jubilee Hills assembly seat. However, his first electoral battle on his home turf was unsuccessful. He lost to Maganti Gopinath of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) by over 16,000 votes.
Although Azhar was keen to contest the by-election caused by Gopinath’s death, the Congress leadership decided to nominate him as a member of the Telangana Legislative Council and make him a minister.
He is the first Muslim face in the Cabinet led by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and has been inducted days before the bypoll in Jubilee Hills.
Even on the personal front, Azhar remained in controversy after divorcing his first wife Naureen in 1996 and marrying model-turned-actress Sangeeta Bijlani. The couple is believed to have separated in 2010.
Azhar had two sons from his first wife. His younger son Ayazuddin died in a bike accident in 2011, while elder son Asaduddin, a domestic cricketer, was recently named Telangana Congress general secretary.
Asaduddin is married to Anam Mirza, younger sister of former tennis star Sania Mirza.
–IANS
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