Advertisement

Team India has it all, from Baazigar to Don: Shah Rukh Khan gives just the perfect names for star cricketers

During a candid chat, he dissected cricketers and justified why he came up with those names.

Team India has it all, from Baazigar to Don: Shah Rukh Khan gives just the perfect names for star cricketers

New Delhi: Beyond the names that we got to see in the scorecards and on the back of their jersies, Team India supertars have assumed different names, given by their fans.

Former India opener Virender Sehwag himself used a fable akin to Panchatantra to compare between batting great Sachin Tendulkar and current captain Virat Kohli.

But Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has probably got the best nicknames for Indian cricketers. For him, skipper Kohli is the 'Don', Mahendra Singh Dhoni is "Baazigar", R Ashwin is "Paheli" and Rohit Sharma is "Baadshah".

Yes, these are the names of his movies.

Khan was live on Star Sports, the official broadcasters of the series, promoting his upcoming film 'Raees', ahead of the third and final ODI match against England.

During a candid chat, he dissected cricketers and justified why he came up with those names.

Talking about 'Don' Kohli, said “The grim determination on his face, mind ticking all the time, and the calmness with which he comes at the crease, knowing that he will win it all”.

He said Dhoni is the one guy in Indian team who can play the last bet – referring to the 2007 ICC T20I World Cup final. Shah Rukh also reckoned that the former captain never indulged in sledging, ever. He called Dhoni a 'Baazigar' for his decision making skills.

Khan was also floored by Rohit's attitude, and professed his love for the star batsman's swagger.

"I like the way he is always cool, calm, collected and completely goes mad at times. He owns the pitch, so he is like a ‘Baadshah’," he added.

The 51-year-old actor also got special words for the 2016 ICC Cricketer of the Year , Ravichandran Ashwin. He called the all-rounder a 'Paheli', for obvious reasons.

“I think he is a mystery. You never know what Ashwin is doing. He seems so easy and calm and then suddenly bowls those unplayable deliveries, and bats masterfully at times," he said.

Indian cricket has seen a successful transition from with Kohli taking over from Dhoni. Under Kohli, India have reclaimed the top spot in Test rankings, while in the limited-overs, the Men in Blue are on course for a series clean-sweep against England.

Later in the year, they will defend the ICC Champions Trophy in England.