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Cricket and wrestling have almost nothing in common, yet we’ve seen both worlds come together many times over the years in very unique ways. Whether it’s John Cena’s social media posts or Dakota Kai using a cricket bat during a match against Tegan Nox, the WWE Universe has seen the two sports cross over in the last few years.
Former WWE Universal Champion Finn Balor even talked about his desire to meet Indian Cricket Team captain Virat Kohli and learn a few things about the sport that is quite popular in his home country, Ireland. Talking to India Today, Balor had the following to say about trying his hands at cricket:
"I absolutely have no idea about the game, never seen much of cricket. I've seen a little bit on TV when Ireland played against Australia. I know Ireland have been doing quite well recently. I've been in Japan and America for the last 15 years, so it's not something I've had much of an opportunity to witness. But obviously, I'm proud and would love to see Ireland and India in the future. Yeah! I'd love to meet the captain of the Indian cricket team. I think he is kind of badass and everything. You know, I'd actually love to play a practice match and if he could show me a few tricks and teach me the laws of the game which I missed out on. I think it would be fun to have a couple of rounds with him."
Even though most of WWE’s Superstars hail from non-cricket playing nations, we’ve seen them visit cricket-crazy countries like India and England where they’ve gotten a chance to try their hands at the sport.
In this article, we will look at the 11 former and current WWE Superstars who’ve tried their hand at cricket.
#11 Former WWE Superstar The Great Khali has played cricket in India
Hailing from India, The Great Khali is undoubtedly one of the most famous wrestlers to have ever emerged from the country. While India is a cricket-loving nation, they love Khali equally as he has gone on to become the first Indian to win the World Heavyweight Championship in WWE history.
While a man his size would normally have trouble holding a regular-sized cricket bat, we’ve seen The Great Khali play some cricket recreationally, and even meet up with some of India’s top cricketers in his free time.
While The Great Khali has tried to wield the cricket bat, it is safe to say that cricketers -- like veteran Indian player Harbhajan Singh -- are not too keen to step inside the squared circle against The Punjabi Nightmare.
#10 Former WWE Superstar Alberto Del Rio has played cricket in the sub-continent
Former WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio is known to be one of the finest workers in the ring. However, when he visited India in 2016, it was cricket that pulled him closer to the locals in the country and made his visit even more special.
During his three-day official WWE visit to India, Del Rio landed in Bengaluru, where he met with the Special Olympics Bharat team and shared some time with the kids. That’s not all, as Del Rio further bonded with the Special Olympics Bharat team by playing cricket with the kids to brighten up their day and make his visit even more memorable.
Del Rio later revealed that the game was a bit difficult for him to understand as he had no prior knowledge about it, yet he thoroughly enjoyed his time with the kids and felt lucky to get a chance to play cricket with them.
During his visit to Pakistan as part of the Pro Wrestling Federation of Pakistan last year, Del Rio got another chance to enjoy the sport before he competed in the wrestling event.
#8 & 9 WWE Superstars Charlotte Flair & Dolph Ziggler visited India and played cricket
The most successful woman in WWE today, Charlotte Flair, headed to India with former World Heavyweight Champion Dolph Ziggler, and the two decided to have a completely different experience in the cricket-crazy nation.
Indian cricket legend Virender Sehwag was there to teach a thing or two about the sport, and he explained the basics of cricket to Charlotte Flair and Ziggler.
Ziggler tried to bowl a few to Sehwag, who showed some respect and defended each one of Ziggler’s deliveries. Flair, on the other hand, decided to knock a few out of the park with the bat in hand as the Sehwag’s own two sons and a few other children bowled at her.
With a lot of prior experience in baseball and softball respectively, Ziggler and Flair were able to do much better than many other first-timers.
After their session, The Showoff spoke about how he enjoyed playing cricket and thanked Sehwag for his guidance:
“That was an awesome experience,” Ziggler said. “We’re grateful to Virender for giving us our first taste of playing cricket.”
It’s always great to see WWE Superstars try out different sports in different countries.
#5, #6 & #7 WWE Superstars Kofi Kingston, Big E and Xavier Woods (The New Day) got a chance to play cricket
In 2019, The New Day visited India as part of the first-ever tryouts conducted in the country by WWE. The visit led to Kofi Kingston, Big E, and Xavier Woods trying their hand at cricket. While cricket is one of India’s favorite sports, The New Day was fairly new to the game.
Thankfully, the Special Olympics Bharat athletes were there to help out the multi-time WWE Tag Team Champions learn a thing or two about cricket.
The New Day are known to be as entertaining outside the ring as they are inside, and the trio decided to have some fun with the athletes of the Special Olympics Bharat squad.
Even though they did not have the best batting stances, they were able to connect the bat with the ball with ease and hit a few shots over the fielders’ heads.
While they did not know too much about the sport, it did not stop them from having a good time as they ensured that they and everyone around them enjoyed their time.
#4 Former WWE Champion Jinder Mahal played cricket during his visit to India
Jinder Mahal’s second run in WWE saw him become a big deal, and the company tried to ride on his back to gain a bigger fanbase outside the USA. As the WWE Champion, Mahal got several opportunities as he was seen as the face of the company.
In 2017, during his visit to India, Mahal took out some time to interact and play cricket with the Special Olympics Bharat Kids before his big match against Triple H at the WWE Supershow.
Speaking to India Today after the session, The Modern Day Maharaja had the following to say:
"It was awesome playing cricket with the Special Olympics team. So that was very cool and it was also very cool to meet them because they inspire me. Because when you see their attitude and the way that they have a passion for sports, for cricket, that's inspiring to me."
"They are very skilled, I tried to bowl but they bowl way better than me and actually I was learning from them. I picked up a few pointers from them and I think maybe after the WWE, I may have a career in cricket."
Mahal was also presented with a custom jersey by the Indian Premier League team Mumbai Indians.
#3 The Miz traveled to the UK with WWE and played cricket with Ben Stokes
WWE visited Newcastle, England in 2016, and The Miz and Dolph Ziggler managed to catch up with England’s ace cricket all-rounder, Ben Stokes. Still recovering from the over that snatched the Cricket World Twenty20 from England’s hands after Stokes conceded consecutive sixes to Carlos Brathwaite of the West Indies, Stokes decided to teach The Miz and Ziggler a thing or two about cricket.
England & Wales Cricket Board partnered with WWE and allowed the three men to visit Ravenswood Primary School in Newcastle for some promotional activities. The three men played a friendly game with the kids of the school, where even The Most Must-See Superstar in WWE and The Showoff got a chance to bat and bowl while getting some tips from Stokes and the kids of the school.
While Ziggler decided not to get in the line of fire, The Miz was brave enough to face a few deliveries from Stokes.
Later on, Stokes celebrated his birthday in the Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle, where he arrived in style and joined the crowd in watching a WWE Live show.
#2 WWE NXT UK Superstar Amir Jordan loves cricket
You may not have seen too much of Amir Jordan, who is currently assigned to WWE NXT UK, but there is a great chance that Amir will end up becoming one of the top international wrestlers of the company in the years to come.
WWE describes Amir as "like no-one you've ever seen before" - and you'll know exactly why they think so highly of him once you see him in action.
The Bhangra Bad Boy was asked on social media whether he enjoys watching or playing cricket, and he surprised us by revealing that he played the sport locally at an under-19 level.
Amir was born and raised in Karachi, Pakistan, which is a cricket crazy nation. Therefore, it's more than understandable that the WWE Superstar loves the sport as cricket is played on every street corner of the country.
Amir further revealed that he still loves watching and playing the game, and his native country, Pakistan, is his favorite cricket team.
#1 WWE legend John Cena played cricket during his visit to Australia
The biggest name WWE has produced over the past couple of decades makes it to yet another list. John Cena is arguably the biggest names in the world of wrestling, and the WWE Superstar has managed to create a huge fanbase all over the world.
During his visit to Australia to promote his film Ferdinand in 2017, Cena decided to visit the Sydney Thunder team at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Cena met Australian legend Shane Watson along with a few other top Australian cricketers who decided to give Cena a crash course in cricket.
Cena managed to wrap his huge hands around the bat’s slim grip and took a baseball stance to try and knock one out of the park. While The Doctor of Thuganomics was unable to connect with his initial strikes, he did manage to knock a few around later on.
Cena later took to social media to talk about how he enjoyed his time playing cricket in Sydney, and he even received his own customized jersey from the Sydney Thunder’s team.
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