Hyderabad, January 06: It is a self-confessed fact that Mohammad Azharuddin was very poor in mathematics. But the former Indian skipper made up for his failure in mathematics by scoring runs.
Azharuddin, now an MP from Moradabad in UP, said his teacher, Brother Joseph, of All Saints High School deserves the credit of making him what he is today. “I have to thank Brother Joseph for helping me in maths, as I was very bad at it. But I made up with batting and by scoring runs,” he said Azharuddin, who prefers to be known as a cricketer more than a politician, recalled the beginnings of his career as he shared the panel, at a function organised by Veteran Cricket Association at Gymkhana, with his mentors Shivlal Yadav and PR Man Singh.
“I remember Man Singh as a serious cricketer.
Shivlal (Yadav) played Test cricket much before me. He gave me lot of tips and his experience helped at the start of my career,” he remembered.
However, talking about the current cricketing scenario in the city, the wristy batsman was sad that Hyderabad is relegated to the Plate Division from the Elite Division. “It is sad we are relegated to the Plate Division.
We have got the talent but have not converted that into performance. It is high time that the players work hard and the concerned authorities should take the right decisions to put the city back on the top,” he said.
Shivlal Yadav informed that the BCCI was serious on lifting the match-fixing ban imposed on Azharuddin. “We hope BCCI lifts the ban soon. We can use his experience as a politician and a cricketer. Hyderabad cricket needs his services,” he added.
Man Singh, whose Hyderabad Blues Cricket Club visited different countries from 1967 to 1994, recalled many such tours of the club.
“Players like Pataudi, ML Jaisimha, Abbas Ali Baig and many others toured to gain experience.
We could generate money through souvenirs but that concept is dead now. It is difficult to organise tours because of lack of sponsors and busy international schedule,” said Man Singh.
The Veterans Cricket Association of Hyderabad’s tour to Australia is led by RA Swaroop, the former Ranji opener. It will play matches in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and Adelaide.
–Agencies