Stop Azharuddin’s Racquet

What credibility will a man banned for life in one sport have as the overseer of another sport?

Jeetendra and Leena Chandavarkar, the ‘dhal gayaa din’ pair, had the most unlikely connection with Indian badminton all these years. That was till Mohammed Azharuddin turned up his collar, looked right and left,  and, realising that he had luxury cars and watches and Parliament membership, decided that he wanted to head the Badminton Association of India (BAI).

Wristiness, the cornerstone of Azhar’s game, is fundamental to badminton as well. But that is the only connection between the two. Lack of common background in itself is not a deal-breaker. There is the odd prominent sports administrator who played a different game in his prime. Jean Gachassin, president of the French Tennis Federation, was a rugby player of repute. But Azharuddin has a blot on his reputation. He has been banned for life by the Indian cricket board for his involvement in match-fixing.

It is unlikely that Azharuddin will become BAI president. In fact, as this is being written, the BAI has termed his proposal ‘invalid’. But assuming he did, and if a badminton player were to fix matches, what credibility would Azhar have to penalise that player?

Besides, badminton is in relatively good health. In February, the sport found a sponsor, Premier Brands, for an amount of Rs 7.5 crore and a period of three years. Saina Nehwal is a star with a world ranking of No 6. Aditi Mutatkar, at No 33, is the second Indian in the women’s top 50. The men’s top 50 features five Indians—Chetan Anand, Arvind Bhat, P Kashyap, Anup Sridhar and Anand Pawar.  They have a qualified man as national coach—P Gopi Chand, the 2001 All England champion. 

In fact, the badminton fraternity seems happy with VK Verma, the current president. A former player says, “The sponsorship deal, Gopi’s appointment as coach and the competent performance of players are feathers in Verma’s cap. He may not have been a sportsman himself like Azhar, but has years of experience as an administrator.”

As often happens in India, political aspirations are likely behind Azharuddin’s new-found interest in badminton. Azharuddin is a Congress MP from Moradabad. Heading a sports federation boosts clout as well as image. It also opens up opportunities for career growth and self-promotion. But everyone has opposed Azhar’s whim. That is how it should be.

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Akshay Sawai