| Personal information | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mohammad Azharuddin | |||
| Born | 8 February 1963 Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India |
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| Nickname | Ajju Azzu Bhai.[1] |
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| Batting style | Right-handed batsman | |||
| Bowling style | Right-arm medium | |||
| Role | Batsman | |||
| International information | ||||
| National side | India | |||
| Test debut (cap 169) | 30 December 1984 v England | |||
| Last Test | 2 March 2000 v South Africa | |||
| ODI debut (cap 51) | 20 January 1985 v England | |||
| Last ODI | 3 June 2000 v Pakistan | |||
| Domestic team information | ||||
| Years | Team | |||
| 1981–2000 | Hyderabad | |||
| 1983–2000 | South Zone | |||
| 1991–1994 | Derbyshire | |||
| Career statistics | ||||
| Competition | Test | ODI | FC | LA |
| Matches | 99 | 334 | 229 | 433 |
| Runs scored | 6,216 | 9,378 | 15,855 | 12,941 |
| Batting average | 45.03 | 36.92 | 51.98 | 39.33 |
| 100s/50s | 22/21 | 7/58 | 54/74 | 11/85 |
| Top score | 199 | 153* | 226 | 161* |
| Balls bowled | 13 | 552 | 1,432 | 827 |
| Wickets | 0 | 12 | 17 | 15 |
| Bowling average | – | 39.91 | 46.23 | 47.26 |
| 5 wickets in innings | – | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 wickets in match | – | n/a | 0 | n/a |
| Best bowling | 0/4 | 3/19 | 3/36 | 3/19 |
| Catches/stumpings | 105/– | 156/– | 220/– | 200/– |
| Source: CricketArchive, 13 February 2009 | ||||
Mohammad Azharuddin (Telugu: ముహమ్మద్ అజహరుద్దీన్, Urdu: محمد اظہرالدین ) (born 8 February 1963, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh) also known as Azhar, is an Indian politician and former cricketer. He was an accomplished batsman and captained the Indian cricket team for much of the 1990s, until being banned for his involvement in a match-fixing scandal.[2] A member of the Indian National Congress, Azharuddin won election from the Moradabad constituency of Uttar Pradesh to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India.
In his prime, he had a graceful, fluid batting style, comparable to that of his English contemporary, David Gower and Australian batsman Greg Chappell. The wrist flick was his most characteristic shot and he fared best against spinners. The grace and fluidity of his wrist once prompted John Woodcock, a noted cricket writer, to say, "It's no use asking an Englishman to bat like Mohammad Azharuddin. For, it would be like expecting a greyhound to win the London Derby!" [1] Former Indian captain and International umpire Venkataraghavan said that "Azharuddin had the best wrists in the game, but Tendulkar isn't too far behind" while praising Sachin Tendulkar. [2]. In Oct 2010, Sri Lankan legend Muralitharan called him one of the best players in cricket on par with Sachin Tendulkar. [3]
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Azhar, as he is popularly known, grew up in Hyderabad and attended a Catholic convent boys school All Saints High School in Hyderabad. Indian cricketers such as Venkatapathy Raju and Noel David have also attended the same school.
Azharuddin is married to former Miss India turned actress Sangeeta Bijlani. This is his second marriage, after he divorced his first wife Naureen, with whom he had two sons, Asad and Ayaz. His son Ayaz, aged 19 years, died on 16 September 2011.
Azhar scored a final total of 22 centuries in Test cricket at an average of 45, and 7 in ODIs at an average of 37. He has the unique distinction of scoring a century in each of his first three Tests - a feat unmatched till date. An excellent fielder, he took 156 catches in ODI cricket which was a world record until Mahela Jayawardene surpassed him. He held world records for maximum ODI runs and fastest ODI hundred. He also scored centuries in his first and last Test.He was known for Flick with wrist shot.
During India's 1990 Test series in England, came in to bat when his team was facing the prospect of following on and scored an aggressive century in just 87 balls. Many regard this as his best innings ever. India was saved from the follow on but lost the match and the series.
He was given out LBW for 199 in a Test match against Sri Lanka and it was his highest Test score.
Eden Gardens, Kolkata proved to be happy hunting ground for Azhar where he scored 5 centuries in 7 Tests at a whopping average of 107.50
In 1991 he was named Wisden Cricketer of the Year and was for many years an inspirational figure in the Indian team with his athletic fielding and leadership.
Azhar eventually stranded one short of 100 Tests milestone following unfortunate events involving match fixing, that led to his retirement.
Azharuddin was captain of the Indian team for most of the 1990s. Statistically he is one of India's most successful captains. He won 103 ODI matches as the captain of the Indian team, which is still an Indian record. His 14 Test Match wins as captain, was a record until it was bettered by Sourav Ganguly.
Towards the end of his career Azharuddin was accused of match-fixing;[4] South African captain Hansie Cronje in his confession for match-fixing had indicated that Azharuddin was the one to introduce him to the bookies.[5] India's premier investigating agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation conducted an investigation & published a report.[2]
Then he admitted to fixing three ODI matches,[6] and this led the BCCI to ban him from the game of cricket for life in 2000. The BCCI lifted the ban on Azharuddin in 2006 and even honoured him along with other Indian Test captains in a ceremony in Mumbai during the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy. The ICC, however, claimed that it alone had the right to revoke the ban despite playing no role in handing out the original ban.
In one of his interviews, he claimed that he was being targeted because he was from a minority community. [7] However, this statement backfired badly and invited severe criticism from all parts of the country, including prominent minority community organisations in India. Ultimately, Azharuddin had to apologise publicly and retract his statements.}
On 16th of September, 2011 Azharuddin's son Ayazuddin (aged 19) died at the Apollo Hospital, Hyderabad. He sustained critical injuries when the Suzuki GSX-R1000 motorcylce he was riding skidded off the road at Puppalguda on Outer Ring Road on 11th of September. Ayazuddin's cousin, Ajmal-ur-Rahman (16) who was riding pillion, was declared brought dead to the hospital. His funeral prayer offered at the historic Mecca Masjid attended by thousands of people. He was laid to rest at the Riyasath Nagar graveyard, Phisalbanda. Ayazuddin was the younger of the two sons of Azharuddin from his first wife Naureen, whom he divorced to marry former Miss India and actress Sangeeta Bijlani.
Azhruddin formally joined the Indian National Congress party on February 19, 2009. He contested the Indian general election, 2009 from Moradabad in western Uttar Pradesh. He won the elections as a candidate of Indian National Congress party by defeating his nearest BJP rival Sarvesh Kumar Singh with a margin of more than 50,000 votes. He has promised to construct a University and a Stadium as well in Moradabad. He has also promised to improve the city's electricity problem[8]
Australia
England
New Zealand
Pakistan
South Africa
Sri Lanka
West Indies
Zimbabwe
Total
| Preceded by Krishnamachari Srikkanth |
Indian National Test Cricket Captain 1989/90 - 1996 |
Succeeded by Sachin Tendulkar |
| Preceded by Sachin Tendulkar |
Indian National Test Cricket Captain 1997/98 - 1998/99 |
Succeeded by Sachin Tendulkar |
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