Top Five Cricketers Who Took Up Acting As their Profession

Well, adorning the role of an international cricketer and representing their country across all international cricket formats is nothing short of a dream for a majority of young aspiring cricketers who are just starting out with their cricketing career on the domestic circuit. However, unfortunately, only a handful of such aspiring young cricketers get to finally live their dream – adorning the Indian cricket team jersey and leading their teams from the front, while the remaining aspiring cricketers generally switch to some other fields, cinema being the most sought-after field of all.

In this article, we will take a look at the top five cricketers who couldn’t achieve their cricketing dreams and took up acting as their mainstream profession.

Harrdy Sandhu

Brace yourself for the shock! Hardavinder Singh Sandhu, also popularly referred to as “Hardy Sandhu”, is an Indian singer and actor who is known for his hit tracks, “Horn Blow” & “Kya Baat Ayy”, and his blockbuster movies, “83”, “Yaaran Da Ketchup” & “Tiranga” is also a former cricketer.

Harrdy Sandhu started off his cricketing career as a fast bowler and also represented Punjab’s Ranji Team and was also a part of India’s U-19 team. Although Harrdy Sandhu unleashed his best potential on the field as a fast bowler, his dream to represent India at an international level was brutally shattered as he could not fully recover from his long-stretched injuries, which kept on affecting his bowling dominance on the field. Although Harrdy Sandhu represented Punjab in only three matches, he ended up picking a total of 12 wickets in the Ranji Trophy 2005 season, speaking volumes about his dominance on the ball.

Angad Bedi

Do you know Angad Bedi is the son of the late legendary former Indian international cricketer Bishan Singh Bedi, who represented India, in international cricket from 1966 to 1979? Well, a popularly known face in the world of Bollywood and the entertainment industry, Angad Bedi has played numerous iconic roles in many blockbuster movies, including “F.A.L.T.U”, “Pink”, “Dear Zindagi”, “Tiger Zinda hai” and many others.

But do you know the fact that, before taking up acting as his mainstream profession, Angad Bedi also tried his luck with cricket? For a brief period of time, Angad Bedi trained as a cricketer and was also a part of India’s U-19 squad but soon he realized that he wanted to create his own legacy instead of following his father’s footsteps. That’s how he called it quits!

Karan Wahi

Well, often popularly called the “chocolate boy” of Indian television, Karan Wahi is undoubtedly one of the most prominent faces of Indian reality shows, daily soaps, and Bollywood movies, but do you know that Karan Wahi, who has been in the entertainment industry for over two decades, now actually started off his career as a professional cricketer?

Karan Wahi was undoubtedly passionate about cricket since his childhood days and started playing at St. Mark’s Senior Secondary Public School. Owing to his power-hitting skills and all-rounder abilities, Karan Wahi was soon picked up to play for Delhi’s under-19 in 2003 alongside all-time greats Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan. Although Karan Wahi had a great potential to excel as an international cricketer, his battle with a serious shoulder injury compelled him to quit the sport.

Vishnu Vishal

Indian producer and actor who has become a popular face in the Tamil film industry over the years, Vishnu Vishal, is at the fourth spot in our list of top five cricketers who couldn’t achieve their cricketing dreams and took up acting as their mainstream profession. Vishnu Vishal completed his MBA degree in marketing from SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Tamil Nadu.

Vishnu Vishal started off with his cricketing career as an opening batsman in league matches for the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA). Although Vishnu Vishal had all the skills required to earn a spot in the national cricket team, a serious leg injury in one of the league matches unfortunately doomed his cricketing career. Before bidding adieu to cricket and taking up acting as his mainstream profession, Vishnu also represented Tamil Nadu at the Ranji Trophy.

Salil Ankola

Well, a few cricketers have also lived their glorious dreams before parting ways with cricket and becoming professional actors. After making a successful debut for Bombay in the Ranji Trophy 1988-89 season, Salil Ankola finally made it to the Indian national cricket team and established himself as one of the most deadly Indian bowlers against Pakistan during India’s tour of Pakistan in 1989-90.

Although Salil Ankola finished the first match with brilliant figures of 2/128, he was dropped from the Indian test squad right after the first match due to injuries. If it wasn’t for the injuries, Salil Ankola undoubtedly would have been able to establish himself as one of the most terrific Indian bowlers.

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