Quotes from Mohammad Azharuddin

I have always been communicative. I can't help it if I have been misunderstood. Sometimes, people don't like straight answers.

Cricket was a splendid chapter of my life; indeed, it made me what I am today. However, cricket alone isn't the only flavour of life. Sometimes, indeed, we tend to take sports too seriously and life too casually.

We in the Congress Party are hoping to do greater efforts to help the people of India, especially the downtrodden who find it very tough to get ahead in life. We are focusing on tackling issues related to unemployment and poverty.

When you are playing on the ground, you are a cricketer, but the moment you step off it, you are just another person. You need to talk to people nicely because you are who you are because of the people.

The fact that I had attained stardom never affected me too much.

A lot of things that should not be written were written without checking with me, things that were not in good taste. That hurt me. That is why I stopped talking to the press. Because they didn't want to ask me. They just wanted to write what they felt like.

What is important is that I am respected both on and off the field by cricketers and fans.

When you bat, you need to have a lot of patience. I started training for it from the age of eight or nine. So, I knew what I needed when I stepped on the field to bat.

My strength is my humility. When you are humble, people like you.

I was a good fielder in the gully in my college days. But in the outfield, I was not such a good fielder.

If you ask me the best bowler, then Wasim Akram was the best bowler because he had a lot of variety. Even when you were batting on 100 or 150, you're not very sure... He could still get you out. That was his forte.

After the match-fixing allegations, the one thing I had was patience. It took a lot of time for the courts to come to a verdict regarding the case. Sometimes, there were adjournments, but during that time, I had patience. We fought very hard, and finally justice prevailed, and we got the right verdict.

My point is simple: When you win a match or a tournament, forget why the captain took certain decisions. Celebrate the victory. Do not try to analyse every decision.

Many of us forget who we were before we became cricketers. I remember how hard I tried to get an autograph when I was young.

I never say no to any event that is associated with education.