Mohammad Azharuddin began his Test career with centuries in each of his first three matches, something no batter had done before. A wristy Hyderabad stroke-maker with quick feet and a gift for working the ball through the leg side, he went on to play 99 Tests and 334 one-day internationals, and captained India in 47 Tests and 174 one-day games through most of the 1990s. His career ended under the shadow of a match-fixing ban that a court later set aside, and he has since built a second life in politics and cricket administration.
Name: Mohammad Azizuddin Azharuddin | Born: 8 February 1963, Hyderabad | Sport: Cricket | Position: Right-handed middle-order batter
Hyderabad and a record start
Azharuddin grew up in Hyderabad and played his Ranji Trophy cricket for the city’s team from 1981 to 2000. His batting relied on timing and wrists rather than power, and he could turn a ball pitched outside off stump through midwicket with a flick that few others could copy.
He made his Test debut against England at Eden Gardens in Calcutta on 31 December 1984 and scored 110. He followed it with hundreds in the next two Tests of the series, becoming the first batter to score centuries in each of his first three Tests. A month later, on his one-day debut against England at Bangalore, he made an unbeaten 47.
A 62-ball hundred
Azharuddin was just as comfortable in limited-overs cricket. In December 1988, against New Zealand at the Moti Bagh ground in Baroda, he reached a century off 62 balls while India chased 279. It was then the fastest hundred in 50-over international cricket. His highest one-day score was 153 against Zimbabwe at Cuttack in April 1998, and he finished with 9,378 runs and seven centuries in the format, along with 156 catches.
Captain through the 1990s
He was appointed India captain in 1989, succeeding Krishnamachari Srikkanth, and led the side for much of the following decade. Under him India won 14 of 47 Tests and 90 of 174 one-day internationals, and took the Asia Cup in 1990-91 and 1995. India were especially strong at home in those years, building their success on spin-friendly pitches and a settled batting order. He captained India at three World Cups, including the 1992 tournament in Australia and New Zealand and the 1996 event on home soil, where India reached the semi-finals.
England 1990 and the fast hundreds
Some of his best batting came on the 1990 tour of England. He scored 121 at Lord’s in the first Test and 179 at Manchester in the second, finishing the series with 426 runs at an average of 85.20. At Calcutta in 1996-97 he made a century off 74 balls, equalling Kapil Dev’s record for the fastest Test hundred by an Indian at the time. His highest Test score was 199 against Sri Lanka at Kanpur in 1986.
He also spent several seasons in English county cricket with Derbyshire between 1991 and 1994. He was named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1991, received the Arjuna Award in 1986 and the Padma Shri in 1988.
The ban and the court ruling
In 2000, following a CBI report into match-fixing, the BCCI and the ICC banned Azharuddin from cricket for life. A trial court upheld the ban in 2003. On 8 November 2012 a division bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court set the ban aside. His international career, however, had ended at 99 Tests, one short of a century of appearances.
Politics and administration
Azharuddin joined the Indian National Congress in February 2009 and was elected to the Lok Sabha from Moradabad that year, serving as an MP until 2014. In September 2019 he became president of the Hyderabad Cricket Association. He was later appointed working president of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee, and on 31 October 2025 he was sworn in as a minister in the Telangana government, with portfolios including minorities welfare and public enterprises.
Career record and honours
- Tests: 99 matches, 6,215 runs, average 45.03, 22 centuries, 21 fifties, highest score 199, 105 catches
- One-day internationals: 334 matches, 9,378 runs, average 36.92, 7 centuries, highest score 153, 156 catches
- Test debut: 31 December 1984 v England, Calcutta (110)
- First batter to score centuries in each of his first three Tests
- 62-ball one-day century v New Zealand, Baroda, December 1988
- Captained India in 47 Tests (14 wins) and 174 one-day internationals (90 wins)
- Asia Cup-winning captain, 1990-91 and 1995
- Wisden Cricketer of the Year, 1991
- Arjuna Award, 1986
- Padma Shri, 1988
