As Sachin turns 50, Rediff brings you 50 fascinating facts about the God of Cricket.
Right from the great Muhammad Ali, who was an influential figure during the African-American Civil Rights Movement to Cte d'Ivoire footballer Didier Drogba, who had a major hand in bringing peace to his country, sports personalities across the world have always played huge roles in social and geopolitical movements. The scenario is no different in India, as a lot of sporting stars have taken the political plunge. Take a look at the sports personalities contesting in elections 2019.
Though it was the iconic batsman's private bash, the who's who of the nation, foreign guests and members of the Indian cricket team were present.
Vishnu Vishal is his name. And he used to be a cricketer before he became an actor.
Some of the key faces for various posts will be former India skipper and Hyderabad Cricket Association president Mohammad Azharuddin, former India captain and Cricket Association of Bengal president Sourav Ganguly, former Test player and Karnataka nominee Brijesh Patel.
Rajneesh Gupta checks out the ODI careers of the 14 Indians with 200 ODI appearances.
Former Indian cricket team captain Mohammad Azharuddin, who is contenting the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Rajasthan's Tonk-Sawai Madhopur, was on Sunday accompanied by his wife and former Bollywood actress Sangeeta Bijlani.
Following the hard-earned four-wicket victory against West Indies on Friday, Mahendra Singh Dhoni became India's most successful captain in One-Day Internationals played away from home.
'We need to respect our players. Our players are as good as anybody.'
'Two of your best players are not available for either of your series is really serious for India. They have been the mainstay of your Indian batting, and the board must find out where the problem is, if at all there is any, rather than its member tweeting that there might be a rift in the side. It is not good for the morale of the side and South Africa is a good team, especially when you are playing on good hard tracks. It's altogether different from playing in any part of the world. The wickets are different.'
Election results day wasn't exactly a happy one for sportspersons. Three former India captains - Mohammad Azharuddin, Bhaichung Bhutia and Dilip Tirkey -- suffered heavy defeats in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls even as 2004 Athens Olympics silver medallist Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore scored a thumping victory.
Former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin's son Ayazuddin and his cousin sustained serious injuries when the motorbike they were riding skidded near Outer Ring Road in Hyderabad on Sunday morning.
A look at the top tweets from your favourite Bollywood celebrities.
India's top shuttlers including Olympic medallist P V Sindhu train under national coach P Gopichand in Hyderabad.
Statistical highlights of the third cricket One-dayer between India and Australia in Mohali on Saturday night.
The impact of Sachin Tendulkar on cricket, India and Indians is unparalleled. Shreekant Sambrani on what made the Mumbai Maestro the greatest pan-Indian hero of modern times.
The two have been spotted together at a few dos and have been putting up loved up pictures with each other on their social media pages.
The hallowed venue, says Bikash Mohapatra, has inadvertently played its part in ensuring several special moments in the Mumbai batsman's fledgling career.
Sania Mirza's best fashion looks from Anam and Asad's wedding in Hyderabad.
South Africa beat India by 141 runs in the first One-dayer of the three-match series between India and South Africa at The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg on Thursday. Here are the statistical highlights...
British journalist Ed Hawkins speaks about his experience with Indian bookies he met while writing his book on match-fixing, and why he believes India should legalise betting to wipe out the evil.
Former skipper Mohammad Azharuddin considers Virat Kohli as the future captain of India but said the dashing batsman needs to tone down his aggression.
Rajneesh Gupta presents all the numbers on India's biggest Test triumphs, Virat's victories and Ashwin's achievements.
Captain MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli gave India a slender chance of coming back into the game after a fight back. But England struck late to level their chances as well. Here are the statistical highlights of the third day's play of the fourth Test between India and England played in Nagpur on Saturday.
Former cricketer Mohammad Azharuddin backed the selectors' decision to drop Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh from the team for the fourth and final Test against England but hoped the two will soon stage a comeback in the squad as they are good players.
The working committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India failed to reach a consensus on whether Mohammad Azharuddin should be brought back under its fold following the Andhra Pradesh high court's decision to lift the life ban on him.
India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni became only the fifth Indian batsman and third wicket-keeper to complete 9000 One-Day International runs when he surpassed the milestone during the 3rd ODI vs New Zealand in Mohali on Sunday.
Former captain Mohammad Azharuddin said he is ready to coach the Indian cricket team in future if the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) approaches him with an offer.
Rajneesh Gupta highlights important numbers featuring the India team from the World Cups.
Statistical highlights of the fourth one-dayer between India and Sri Lanka in Colombo.
Former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin feels current skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who has never minced words in giving opinions on his teammates, should be "careful with his comments" if he wants a happy dressing room in the times to come.
The condition of Ayazuddin, son of former cricketer and Moradabad member of Parliament Mohammad Azharuddin, who was grievously injured in a road mishap in Hyderabad, continued to remain 'critical' for the fourth day today, Apollo Hospital sources said.
Former India captain Mohammad Azharuddin was a relieved man on Thursday after the life ban imposed on him for alleged involvement in match-fixing was set aside by the Andhra Pradesh high court.
The former India opener said Kaneria has played 60-55 Tests for his country. If despite that he's being made to face such torture, "this is really shameful".
It was on April 22, 1998, when bating great Sachin Tendulkar hit a magnificent 143 against Australia that helped India qualify for the final of the Austral-Asia Cup in Sharjah. Just when things looked out of reach, Tendulkar stepped up with the bat and although India could not win the contest his splendid knock ensured that they made it to the final ahead of New Zealand.
# Virender Sehwag is now the sixth Indian to reach 8,000 runs or more in ODIs, aggregating 8025 at an average of 35.66 in 240 matches, joining Sachin Tendulkar (18,111), Sourav Ganguly (11363), Rahul Dravid (10889), Mohammad Azharuddin (9378) and Yuvraj Singh (8051).
'The only chance England will have is, if they give green tops, but if they give green tops they will also struggle, because we also have very good swing bowlers'
Former India captain Mohammad Azharuddin, on Friday, rubbished the claims made by his former teammate Vinod Kambli that the 1996 World Cup semi-final against Sri Lanka could have been 'fixed'.
Former India batsman Vinod Kambli raised suspicion on the 1996 World Cup semi-final between India and Sri Lanka, saying he found 'something amiss' in the game.
Here's what your favourite celebrities are tweeting.
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