Mohammed Azharuddin lived his life as a cricketer and a moderately successful politician. Azhar, now in the spotlight for a biopic named after him, was one of India’s most successful Test captains who had a style of his own on and off the field.

The 53-year-old Azhar emerged from a middle-class and orthodox Hyderabadi family. He made a stunning arrival to Test cricket, slamming centuries in each of his first three Tests against England in 1984-85.

Azhar was known for stylish batting, especially his leg-side flicks that drew comparison with the great Greg Chappell and Zaheer Abbas. A gifted fielder, who made the wristy flick throws from cover point a trademark, Azhar was clearly a man conspicuous by his swagger and mannerisms.

His collar-up demeanour, now a fashion across cricket fields and even garments, caught the eye of all.

Was it all about arrogance of a man who defied the odds and was caught in various personal controversies, including a divorce and marriage to model-actress Sangeeta Bijlani?

Just like his classy and smooth leg-side shots, Azhar has a simple answer.

“While fielding at point, I used to have problems in my neck skin because of the exposure to the sun. Hence, I decided to raise my collar as protection and it became a habit,” Azhar told Radio Channel fever 104 FM.

Azhar also made the white helmet famous. At a time when not many would wear a helmet and brave it out in the middle, Azhar wore a white one.

“I had a liking for white helmet since we used it a lot during playing Tests. And since there was no compulsion of using a blue helmet, I played with a white one,” Azhar told the radio channel.

Azhar was known for his fondness for wrist watches and cars.

Due to the match-fixing controversy, Azhar was denied the honour of playing a 100 Tests. His 99th Test was equally dramatic.

Against South Africa in Bangalore in March 2000, Azhar scored a century (102) in India’s second innings. India, led by Sachin Tendulkar, still lost the match by an innings as South Africa won the two-match series, 2-0.