Hyderabad:TPCC working president and former India cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin is likely to be fielded as the Congress candidate for the upcoming Jubilee Hills Assembly bypoll. Party sources said the TPCC leadership has recommended his name and forwarded it to the high command for final approval.According to sources, AICC Telangana in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan and TPCC president B. Mahesh Kumar Goud met Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy at his residence on Wednesday to discuss the bypoll. Based on internal surveys and feedback from local leaders, it was decided to propose Azharuddin’s name.The by-election was necessitated following the sudden demise of BRS MLA Maganti Gopinath on June 8. Gopinath had defeated Azharuddin in the 2023 Assembly polls by a margin of over 16,000 votes. Following Gopinath’s death, Azharuddin expressed willingness to contest the bypoll, describing Jubilee Hills as his home constituency.Party insiders said Azharuddin’s familiarity with the area and his candidature in the previous election weighed in his favour. However, the TPCC leadership has reportedly advised him to revamp his campaign strategy and increase engagement with grassroots leaders and cadre.Local leaders flagged Azharuddin’s lack of urgency in the previous election as a key reason for his defeat. They cited delayed campaigning, limited interaction with party workers and weak booth-level mobilisation. The leadership is said to have taken this feedback seriously before recommending his name. With the Congress keen to wrest the seat from the BRS, the party high command is expected to finalise Azharuddin’s candidature soon.