5 Indian captains and biggest blemishes on their records

#4 Mohammad Azharuddin and India's away woes (90s)

Mohammad Azharuddin oversaw a barren overseas run for India's Test team

As an Indian cricket aficionado who grew up in the 90s, the decade was a rather mixed bag. Even though the team played plenty of iconic contests against star-studded opposition teams, their batting fortunes were firmly entrenched on the able shoulders of Sachin Tendulkar even as the others chipped in occasionally. With a reliable spinner such as Anil Kumble at his disposal, Mohammad Azharuddin created a fortress on home soil. While India did not lose a single Test series at home throughout the 90s, their away record was shambolic.

Apart from the facile 235-run win against a feeble Sri Lankan side in Colombo (SSC) and the accompanying series victory, India were not able to taste any sort of Test success outside their comfort zone. From 27 away Tests under Azharuddin's captaincy, the Indians won only once and lost ten matches. The major reason behind their slump was the inability of the bowlers to pick up 20 wickets on foreign pitches. While pace spearhead Javagal Srinath relished bowling on Indian surfaces a lot more than those outside, the threat posed by spin was also neutralised. A fickle batting lineup, prone to frequent collapses, did not help matters at all.