Prominent cricketer-turned-politicians!

Mohammed Azharuddin The former India captain became the latest cricketer to take the plunge into politics in February 2009 when he joined the Congress party Azhar began his innings with the following observation ldquoI am happy to join the Congress but I cannot decide from where I will contest the elections as now I am not the captain I am here to help the Congress and I have to do good work for the people and for the partyrdquo He contested the Indian general election 2009 from Moradabad in western Uttar Pradesh He won the elections as a candidate of Indian National Congress party by defeating his nearest BJP rival Kunvar Sarvesh Kumar Singh by a huge margin Mohammed Azharuddin with wife Sangeeta left and former teammate Kapil Dev centre during his campaign for the general elections in Moradabad in May 2009 Vinod Kambli Sachin Tendulkarrsquos childhood friend Vinod Kambli scored two Test double centuries before losing his way somehow despite making numerous comebacks His career was marred by controversies As a politician he contested on a Lok Bharati Party ticket from Vikhroli Mumbai He lost Navjot singh Sidhu The dashing Indian opener turned TV commentator judge on a reality show and then politician Sidhu was elected to the Lok Sabha as the member from Amritsar in 2004 on a BJP ticket He later resigned following his conviction for culpable homicide After the Supreme Court stayed his conviction he successfully contested the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat defeating his Congress rival State Finance Minister Surinder Singla by 77626 votes Manoj Prabhakar The former India allrounder played 39 Tests and 130 ODIs for India The Indian cricket Board banned him for his alleged role in the matchfixing scandal As a politician he contested from New Delhi in 1998 only to lose badly Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi The late oneeyed prince who led India to their first overseas Test win will go down in history as one of cricketrsquos finest captains ever The Nawab of Pataudi passed away in 2011As a politician Pataudi contested on a Congress ticket from Bhopal in 1991 and lost He had a similar experience previously in 1971 Back then he suffered a defeat from Gurgaon while representing the Vishal Haryana Party Kirti Azad As a cricketer Azad was part of the Indian team that won the 1983 World Cup He played 7 Tests and 25 ODIs His father Bhagwat Jha Azad was Biharrsquos Chief Minister in 198889 Azad later turned out as a BJP MP from Darbhanga He remains active in politics Chetan Chauhan One of the most courageous opening batsmen of his time Sunil Gavaskarsquos former opening partner Chetan Chauhan turned selector manager and politician after hanging his cricketing boots As a politician he was elected to Parliament on a BJP ticket from Amroha in 1991 and 1998 Though he lost both elections he continues to be actively involved in politicsu00a0 Cricketers turned politicians outside India Imran Khan Pakistanrsquos only World Cupwinning captain turned to politics immediately after retirement He is chairman of the Pakistan TehreekeInsaf which has not been a success story so far Earlier in the decade he was in contention for the Prime Ministerrsquos post but seems to be floundering lately in labyrinthine world of Pakistan politics Arjuna Ranatunga Sri Lankarsquos only World Cupwinning captain Arjuna Ranatunga is also the nationrsquos most influential cricketeru00a0After retirement he became selector administrator chairman of the board and politician As a politician he was part of Chandrika Kumaratungarsquos Sri Lanka Freedom Party Now hersquos an opposition leader Sanath Jayasuriya Nicknamed the Matara Marauder Sanath Jayasuriya tore bowlers apart with his attacking strokeplay He was instrumental in Sri Lankarsquos 1996 World Cup triumph As a politician he turned MP from his hometown Matara recently He is a part of the ruling alliance led by Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa Hashan Tillakaratne The former Sri Lanka captain was a fine middleorder batsman who played 83 Tests and 20 ODIs He was part of Sri Lankarsquos 1996 World Cupwinning side As a politician he remains a member of the United National Party He was appointed as the partyrsquos organiser for Avissawella constituency in Colombo Sir Frank worrell A stylish righthanded batsman and the first black captain of the West Indies Sir Frank Worrell was one of the first cricketers to be involved in active politics When he quit cricket Alexander Bustamante appointed him to the Jamaican Senate Worrell supported a closer political union between the nations of the Caribbean u00a0