Former Indian cricket team captain Mohammad Azharuddin has reacted with disappointment and anger towards the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) after he was removed from a personal honour at the city's famous Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
Azharuddin, who served as the president of the HCA from 2019 to 2023, was deeply hurt by the recent move to have his name deleted from the North Stand of the stadium, in accordance with a directive from the association's Ombudsman.
Talking to IANS, Azharuddin expressed his anguish: "It hurts me too much to say this, but sometimes I regret having played cricket. It's heart-wrenching to see people with negligible or no idea of the game now in a position to guide and lead. It's a total shame to the sport."
Legal Battle on the Horizon and Plea to BCCI
The ex-skipper opened up his strategy to approach court and called on the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to intervene. He referred to what he regards as an escalating trend of disorder in the HCA.
I am set on seeking legal recourse against this injustice, and I call on the BCCI to step in and take the right action. This matter is not singular — Sunrisers Hyderabad also had a confrontation with the association regarding passes, indicating a trend of discord and mismanagement," he stated.
Azharuddin continued to describe how the changes have personally impacted him. "What is happening is beyond understanding, and it pains me at a personal level. I was not permitted to run in the HCA elections just because I revealed the corruption in the system. That reality turned me into a target."
Petition and Ethics Officer's Verdict
The decision to name Azharuddin's name was made following a petition filed by the Lords Cricket Club, which is one of the HCA's affiliated members. The petition stated that Azharuddin had unlawfully authorized a resolution in December 2019 — shortly after he took up the presidency — to have the North Stand named after him.
Justice (Retd) V. Eswaraiah, ethics officer in the HCA, allowed the petition, citing procedural defaults. According to the constitution of the HCA, an honor of this kind was formally supposed to be approved by the General Body — a procedure the petition alleged was omitted.
This episode is the latest in a string of controversies and leadership crises that have beset the HCA over the past few years. Repeated allegations of administrative impropriety and internal strife have attracted unwanted publicity to the state cricket association.
Azharuddin's ouster from the stadium stand is merely the latest installment in a saga that mirrors the wider instability in Hyderabad cricket's governing structures.
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