Big blow to Md Azharuddin as Hyderabad Cricket Association asks to remove...

Mohammed Azharuddin, former Indian skipper, has suffered a major blow after the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) ordered to removal of the stand named after him at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. This decision has been taken citing a conflict of interest for the former HCA president. Even the HCA has been told to ensure that tickets are not printed with Azharuddin's name on them. The order was passed by the Hyderabad Cricket Association’s ethics officer and Ombudsman, Justice V Eswaraiah, on Saturday.

What did HCA Ombudsman say?

''The fact that there has been no ratification/modification of the decision by the General Body further strengthens the case against the Respondent No. 1 (Azharuddin), as the Respondent No. 1 has exceeded his authority to benefit himself,'' Eswaraiah said in his 25-page verdict.

How it all started?

A complaint was filed in February by a Hyderabad-based outfit Lords Cricket Club. The club requested Eswaraiah to set aside Azharuddin’s high-handed action in naming the North Stand by his name, and it be continued as the VVS Laxman Stand for all practical purposes.

For the unversed, the decision to put Mohammed Azharuddin's name on the North Stand, which was previously called the VVS Laxman Pavilion, was taken in November 2019 after an Apex Council meeting.