“The Second Innings”: Cricketers excelling in other professions following their retirement

(Ewen Chatfield, a Former New Zealand cricketer working as a cab driver after his retirement)

Undoubtedly, cricket has been among the most played sports worldwide, and being the 2nd most popular sport in the world, it is played by many in every corner of every country. Cricket has been a professional sport in India for more than 90 years and even more than a century in some other countries. Many well-known and remarkable players worldwide have engraved their names and historical moments in the hearts of many fans. Seeing those legends playing with their whimsical skills on the pitch is quite joyful. But after their retirement, fans must be curious about their lives and what they are doing now. Interestingly, some of the former cricketers have shifted to different professions and businesses after their retirement, and they kept a very low profile, which can amaze the minds of their fans. Let's throw some light on the afterlives of some legends after their disappearance from international cricket.

1. Brett Lee

Brett Lee is a nightmare to the batters of his time, one of the most feared Australian pacers the world has witnessed. But apart from his cricket skills, the handsome Aussie celeb has also left his indelible mark in the entertainment industry. The New South Wales-born Australian pacer took over 700 international wickets in his outstanding career. Following his mesmerizing performance, Brett has a decent net worth of 11 million dollars, in which a significant part of his international and domestic career, brand endorsements, commentary, and very interestingly, the music and entertainment industry plays a vital role. With his immense interest in music, Lee is strongly interested in the world of music and has contributed a lot to the industry.

(Brett Lee showcasing his guitaring skills and his love for music)

Lee played guitar for the band ‘Six and Out’ in the early span of his music career and also wrote lyrics for the song ‘You’re the one for me’ and recorded this song with the biggest Indian musical legend, Asha Bhosle. He was also featured in the video song of the music with Smt. Asha Bhosle, which is a lifetime achievement for him as a music lover. Brett starred in the romantic comedy film ‘Unindian’ in 2015 and also in the short film ‘Dream Date,’ directed by Adam Rainford. He was a co-host of a famous travel show ‘Getaway,’ which aired on Fox Life in 2015.

2. Nathan Astle

The Kiwi batsman “Nathan Astle” became the greatest ODI player in New Zealand during his career and, correspondingly, one of the best openers in the test format. Despite this, the NZ star scored more than 11,000 runs and took approximately 150 wickets in his successful career; Astle showed a nature like a free bird with a let-go attitude, which hampered his chances of being selected as the team captain. The Kiwi player has an impressive net worth of 5 million dollars (Approximately INR 42 crore), which he has majorly earned from his cricket career, brand endorsements, and autosport career. As Astle trusted his reflexive nature, he was on the way to excel his career in auto sport racing after his retirement announcement.

(Nathan Astle posing with his modified sprint car for a media pic)

Kiwi players are always well known for their professions other than cricket, and Nathan has always been one of the unique ones in his choice to be an auto racer in the modified sprint car category. He was a great automotive enthusiast. Therefore, he headed toward his home city to pursue his career and competed in 'Ruapuna Speedway 2010 edition' in the modified sprint car category. He was too passionate about his career and was sweating his mind out to achieve something. He finally became successful when he secured third position in the South Island Championship in 2013.

3. Andrew Flintoff

The absolute menace on the pitch, "Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff," was a scary right-arm fast bowler alongside a dependable batsman who scored over 7000 runs and took over 380 wickets in his international career, making him an extraordinary all-rounder. Additionally, after he retired from international cricket, he had a phenomenal career as a television celebrity and has also practised boxing for a few years. He has earned a lot of fortune in his life and has a net worth of approximately 20 million US dollars. Talking about his cricket career, Flintoff handled the position of captain and vice-captain for his English cricket team and was also the 2005 Ashes series hero.

(Andrew Flintoff after winning his debut match as a boxer)

After his retirement, he initiated his career in boxing in 2009; Freddie has a great physique for the sport, with a height of 6 ft 4 inches. He had a debut and showdown in a single match against America's Richard Dawson and won the match in the 4th round, after which he decided to put a full stop on his boxing career because his body couldn't keep up with the sport anymore. Flintoff has a successful role in many shows like Celebrity Deal or No Deal; I'm a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!, Sky One, Australian Ninja Warrior, Cannonball, and Top Gear.

4. Yusuf Pathan

The new era politician and former cricket legend Yusuf Pathan is renowned for his explosive batting performances and as a part-time off-spinner, who debuted for India in the dramatic World Cup final against Pakistan in 2007, which India clinched by 5 runs and wrote history in the world cricket. He was a reliable all-rounder and contributed in crucial moments. He also greatly contributed to the victorious 2011 ICC World Cup for India. Yusuf is entitled to some significant milestones in his very short career, being the fastest Indian batter to score a fifty in just 21 balls in the ODI format. He had a notable IPL career after scoring more than 3200 runs and approximately 42 wickets in his 12-year-long IPL career. He has approximately a humongous net worth of INR 248 crores, most of which is earned from cricket and his endorsements.

(Yusuf Pathan attending a rally on behalf of his party, Trinamool Congress)

Recently, his career saw a sharp growth with a steady rise in net worth due to his intent to kick start his political career in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections after joining Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamta Banerjee and representing Trinamool Congress in the Baharampur Lok Sabha of Murshidabad district. He is facing 'Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury' from Congress, who has been undefeated since 1999, which is a big challenge for him, simultaneously carrying a chance of a big blow in his debut year in politics. He surely wants to contribute to the place where he made his cricket career successful and work for the people, and he also wants to stay connected to those who have shown him a lot of love during crucial moments in his life.

5. Rahul Dravid

To many, he is known as "The Wall," a former Indian cricketer and one of the most phenomenal batsmen in the sport's history; Rahul Dravid made his debut in 1996 against Sri Lanka in Singapore. He had an astonishing career of over 16 years, during which he scored 13,288 runs in test cricket and 10,889 runs in ODI; he patiently established himself as a middle-order batsman known for his unbreakable defence and also led India as captain from 2003 to 2007. Dravid has worked a lot under BCCI all his life and made a net worth of INR 320 crores from his playing career, brand endorsements, and additionally ceiling a new role of head coach of the national team, which brought him under the light again after his retirement.

(Rahul Dravid attending the press conference as the head coach of team India)

After his retirement, Dravid didn't stop his contributions to the Indian cricket team; he played a key role as the coach and mentor of India under-19 and India A teams with the aim to develop and nurture the future talents of the main squad. Dravid is currently the head coach of the Indian National team and has always been an asset to the team, both during his playing days and as a coach afterwards. This role generated a handsome contract amount, which effected a huge rise in his net worth, being the head coach of such a country like India, which is the cricket superpower of the world nowadays.

6. Joginder Sharma

The magician on the ground, Joginder Sharma, is a top-notch First Class and List A player who did not get many opportunities to showcase his unseen talent on the International cricket grounds. He was a dynamic all-rounder, and with his medium-pace bowling, he troubled batsmen like Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, and Yuvraj Singh in List A matches. Joginder also outperformed in the 2004-05 Ranji series with two successive hundreds and an impactful ten-wicket haul. He debuted in 2004 against Bangladesh in an ODI tour and secured a place in the squad in the 2007 T20 World Cup.

(Joginder Sharma after getting the post of DSP in Haryana)

He bowled the last over in the 2007 World Cup against Pakistan and nailed the over by bagging the most important wicket of Misbah-ul-Haq and securing India a victory in the Finals. The Haryana Government announced a cash reward of 21 lakhs and a job as Deputy Superintendent of Police(DSP) for his contribution to the victory. Joginder continued to serve as a DSP in Pehowa in the Kurukshetra district of Haryana. Despite failing to stretch his international career long after performing so well, Joginder made a huge net worth of INR 300 crores, and his government job, which has a handsome salary, played a significant role surely.