There is a lot of cricket in me: Mohammad Azharuddin

November 14, 2012

azar

He made his first century at the Eden and shares a special bond with Bengal. Former Indian captain and Congress MP Mohammad Azharuddin talks to CT about his future plans after the Andhra high court revoked the match-fixing ban on him. Excerpts:

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

It is difficult for me to express in words how relieved I am after the court verdict. For a cricketer, taking away his game is the end of the road. Par mujhe kisise gila shikwa nahi hai. Mujhe ladai jhagra nahi karna. I'm in a very positive frame of mind right now. Agey nayi zindagi hai, mujhe desh ke liye bahut kuch karna hai.

BCCI had given me cricket... it made me what I am. I have no grudges against them. There is a lot of cricket in me. If they consider me for a coach or mentor's role, I'll be more than happy to take it up.

LAST 12 YEARS WERE A TEST

My parents and sons have stood by me for the last 12 years. Thousands of people were praying for me. Even when I took up politics, I came across people who loved me for the cricketer I was. It was a bitter fight, but I never gave up. Allah wanted me to see this day. But losing Ayaz was the biggest blow. Losing a young son is something I hope and pray no person has to go through. Apna jawan beta ko khona kya hota hai, yeh shayad hi kisiko malum hoga. But I have coped with it.

EDEN AND BENGAL ARE SPECIAL TO ME

I have so many good memories of playing in Bengal. My first century was at Eden. I have always been successful at the Eden. Recently I went to Bengal to campaign for Pranabda's son. People there still love me so much. I was really touched.

I don't remember the name of the pitch-maker at Eden, but I had given my man of the match money to him. I did it because I felt like doing something for him.

LINKUPS DON'T BOTHER ME

There are certain aspects of my life I have never spoken about, neither will I do it now. I have never reacted to the negative things that have been said about my personal life. Even when I was linked to a sportsperson I chose not to be bothered by it. Ye sab chalta rehta hai.

THE FAMOUS WRIST FLICK IS ALL BUT GONE

There are plenty of promising kids in the game. Now that I have got the chance to pass on my legacy, I will do the best for the next generation.

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News Network
February 13,2020

Feb 13: Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna were buried in a private funeral service in Southern California last week, multiple outlets reported late Tuesday.

Citing Kobe Bryant's death certificate, Los Angeles Fox affiliate KTTV reported the remains of the former Lakers star and his daughter were transferred to Pacific View Memorial Park and Mortuary in Corona del Mar. Kobe and Brianna were laid to rest in a private ceremony there last Friday.

According to KTTV, the death certificate cited Kobe's cause of death as "blunt trauma" sustained in a "commercial helicopter crash." It also said his death was "rapid."

Corona del Mar is a community within Newport Beach, where the Bryant family lives.

Kobe, 41, and Gianna, 13, were among nine people killed when the helicopter they were in crashed on a hillside in Calabasas, Calif., northwest of Los Angeles, on Jan. 26. Orange Coast College baseball coach John Altobelli, 56; his wife, Keri; and their daughter Alyssa, 14 -- who played on the same club basketball team as Gianna Bryant -- also were killed. Christina Mauser, a 38-year-old who was the top assistant coach of the Mamba girls basketball team, was also killed in the accident, as were Sarah Chester, 45; her daughter Payton Chester, 13; and pilot Ara Zobayan, 50.

A public memorial service for the Bryants will be held Feb. 24 at Staples Center, beginning at 10 a.m. PT.

While the date -- 2/24 -- conveniently falls between two Lakers' home games, it still could have been chosen symbolically. Gianna -- one Kobe and Vanessa' four daughters -- wore No. 2 on her basketball jersey while Kobe was No. 24 for part of his 20-year-tenure with the Lakers, and his retired jerseys -- he also wore No. 8 -- hang at Staples Center.

The Los Angeles Times reported that "entry is expected to be severely restricted" at the venue despite Staples Center's capacity of about 20,000.

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Agencies
May 9,2020

Tokyo, May 9: As the world continues to grapple with coronavirus pandemic, the organisers of Tokyo Game Show have cancelled 2020 showpiece event.

TGS 2020 was slated to be played from September 24 to September 27 at the Makuhari Messe convention center. However, there now talks going on for holding an online event instead.

According to the Verge, this is the first time that TGS has ever been cancelled since it started in 1996.

TGS 2020 gained more attention because of its status as the last major trade show before the launch of the upcoming next-gen consoles, the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.

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News Network
January 28,2020

Gibraltar, Jan 28: Young Indian Grand Master R Praggnanandhaa pulled off a huge upset, beating former world champion Veselin Topalov in the sixth round of the 18th Gibraltar chess festival to record his fifth straight win here.

The 14-year-old Chennai lad needed just 33 moves to put it across the Bulgarian. He had started with a loss against compatriot P V Nandhidhaa but since then he has been on a winning spree.

Praggnanandhaa, who recently won the world under-18 title, said: "It was very tough to prepare against him."

He is in second spot on five points with six other players and will take on Chinese GM Wang Hao in the seventh round.

Seventeen-year-old Russian GM Andrey Esipenko jumped to sole lead with 5.5 points with a win over Georgia's Ivan Cheparinov

The Russian player would be unpaired in the seventh round as he decided to take a bye.

A bunch of players including Indians — B Adhiban, K Sasikiran, Shardul Gagare, Karthikeyan Murali, SL Narayanan — are in joint third place with 4.5 points.

Adhiban beat Gabriel Flom, while D Gukesh, the world's second youngest Grand Master ever, defeated Martin Percivaldi to move to four points.

Also winning were Karthikeyan Murali against Qi B Chen and Gagare over France's Maxime Lagarde.

Top-seed Shakhriyar Mamedyarov's moderate run continued as he was held to a draw by GM Aryan Chopra.

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