Summaries

Synopsis

Indian cricketer Mohammad Azharuddin (Emraan Hashmi) scores a century in his 99th test match in 2000, but he soon faces allegations of match-fixing as his name has been linked with a London based bookie M.K. Sharma / Shaun. The allegations are led by ex-cricketer Manoj who claims that he wants to clean up the cricket match fixing system in the country. Azhar is vilified as a traitor and whole country turns against him.

The India cricket board slaps a life-ban on Azhar. Azhar decides to challenge the ban in court with the help of his lawyer friend Reddy (Kunaal Roy Kapoor). Azhar says that he does not care about the verdict but wants to regain his lost legacy and his respect that he lost in the eyes of the nation.

The ban is based on a series of sting operation videos in which bookies and players associated to cricket directly talk about how Azhar was paid money for fixing matches. As per the charge-sheet Azhar was accused of fixing 3 specific matches between 1996 and 1999.Azhar is also accused of having personal connects with London based bookie MK Sharma.

The story shifts to 1963, when Azhar was born to a middle-class family in Hyderabad. His grandfather Wajihuddin (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) dreamed of Azhar playing 100 tests for Team India and motivates a soft-spoken Azhar to answer his rivals with his batting skills. Wajihuddin believed that Azhar would bring fame for the Muslim community with his exploits in cricket.

Young Azhar goes for an Indian team selection match to Mumbai in 1983 (The match is between South Zone and West Zone), where on match day he receives news of his grandfather's death. Nonetheless, he participates in the match, in accordance with his grandfather's last wish. Azhar impresses the selectors, sealing his place in Team India, and he soon becomes national hero by scoring 3 consecutive centuries in his first 3 test innings. Azhar soon marries Naureen (Prachi Desai) in 1987, and they both begin a happy married life.

After a loss against Pakistan in 1991, the president of cricket broad calls Azhar for a one-on-one meeting. Azhar initially fears getting dropped from the team but is surprised when he is offered the position of team captain. Some senior players, like Manoj (Karanvir Sharma), Ravi (Gautam Gulati) and Navjot (Manjot Singh), resent Azhar's appointment, not wishing to take orders from a younger player. But Kapil (Varun Badola) supports and encourages him to focus on his duty. Azhar continues to admonish the senior players when they play irresponsibly or when their actions on the field are not in the best interest of the team.

While playing in an India-Pakistan match in England in 1991, Javed taunts Azhar telling him that since Pakistani team is Muslim Allah (God) is with them as it's Jumma (Friday, Muslim holy day) and got rebuked by Azhar who mentioned his own Muslim heritage. Azhar leads his team to victory, and soon becomes a successful captain.

At peak of his career, Azhar's personal life takes a twist when he meets a former Miss India, Bollywood actress Sangeeta (Nargis Fakhri) during an ad film shoot and falls in love with her. Sangeeta likes him too but, aware that he is already married, she warns him to stay away from her. Nevertheless, Azhar is infatuated by her beauty and does not listen to her advice.They both begin dating but kept their relationship hidden, until it is exposed by a gossip magazine. Azhar then publicly announces his affair with Sangeeta. Heartbroken, Naureen asks him for a divorce, and soon Azhar leaves her to marry Sangeeta.

During a cricket match against the West Indies, Azhar gets in a spat with Manoj for a slow run rate in order to complete his century, letting the team lose. Manoj is dropped from the next match and Azhar leads the team to victory. Manoj is humiliated and vows to take revenge. In later years of his career, Azhar famous for his expensive lifestyle, comes into the eyes of match-fixers. He is soon approached by a London-based bookie disguised as a diamond merchant, who later offers him 1 Crore rupees to under play in a match against Sri Lanka, which Azhar hesitantly accepts.

In a parallel story, after the match-fixing scandal, Azhar is now facing nationwide criticism and a London-based prosecutor, Meera (Lara Dutta), is building up a strong case against him on the basis of sting operations done by Manoj on Ravi, Navjot and several other cricketers. Meera was the biggest fan of Azhar and feels let down by his behavior. Meera believes that Azhar is guilty and is adamant to prove it in court, and in front of the whole world.She also uses the report of the inquiry commission set up by the cricket board and secretly meets bookie M. K. Sharma (Rajesh Sharma) to gather more evidence. MK tells Meera that in 1991, he met a Dubai based don and offered to fix the entire series. With the funding from the done, he went to India to buy players. He started scouting their personal lives to see who would be agreeable to sell their integrity. MK confirms that he paid Azhar Rs 1 Crore.

Meera also approaches Naureen, asking her to serve as a witness, but she refuses. Meanwhile, Azhar and his lawyer Reddy are struggling to find any proof of innocence as none of his fellow cricketers are ready to help him out. Azhar attends a gym-opening ceremony to gain back his old fame in public but is left insulted by the owner himself.

After a long, eight-year legal fight, Reddy finally makes a breakthrough by proving in court that the inquiry commission report is biased, as they were paid by cricket board itself. Reddy even challenges the authenticity of sting operation tapes as none of the witness was under oath and cannot be treated as truth. Later, Azhar also reveals that he took 1 Crore rupees from the bookie to keep him away from other team members but later scored a match winning innings and returned all the money.

On the final day of judgment both Naureen and Sangeeta attend the court hearing, showing their support for Azhar. Kapil also states in a television interview that he believes Azhar is innocent. In its final verdict, the court declares Azhar innocent and free from all match-fixing allegations due to lack of evidence. The court lifts the India cricket board ban imposed on Azhar. Azhar once again proudly walks out of the court with his head high and name cleared from all scandals.