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What's the story?
The Great Khali made a surprise return on Sunday's Battleground PPV and helped Jinder Mahal successfully retain the WWE Championship. The unexpected return of the former World Champion made many fans and critics wonder why WWE would make this decision.
Billi Bhatti of Sportskeeda was the first one to report that The Great Khali would be involved in WWE Battleground's main event. Khali's return was WWE's way to get Jinder over with the Indian crowd.
In case you didn't know...
The Great Khali was a part of WWE since 2006 and he won the World Heavyweight Championship in 2007. His contract with WWE ended in 2014 when he left and started his own training academy and promotion, Continental Wrestling Entertainment.
The heart of the matter
Dave Meltzer noted on his podcast that the Indian audience does not seem to be too happy with Jinder Mahal and since one of the big reasons that WWE made Jinder champion was to expand their reach and fan base in India, they needed a bigger star to put The Maharaja over in the eyes of the Indian viewers.
Jinder Mahal already had two accomplices, The Singh brothers, but The Great Khali's appearance during the Punjabi Prison Match, made, even more, sense since he is not only the only other Superstar of Indian origin to have held the WWE World Title, he is also the creator of the rarely seen match format.
What's next?
It is unclear if The Great Khali will reprise his spot on the SmackDown roster or if this is just a temporary arrangement between the two Indian Superstars.
Author's take
It is a well-known fact that The Great Khali is one of the biggest names in India when it comes to WWE and he's even been in a couple of Bollywood movies. It was a smart decision by WWE and a shocking one as well!
