CRICKETERS OF INDIA – MOHAMMAD AZHARUDDIN
INDIAN CRICKETER – MOHAMMAD AZHARUDDIN
Mohammad Azharuddin (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 his involvement in a match-fixing scandal forced him into retirement. 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.
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.
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.