Cricketers Who Made Waves in World of Music

Cricket players are somewhat unique in the sporting world, in that many come with hidden talents that bare no relation to wielding a cricket bat or bowling a hard piece of leather.

In places such as the UK, this is because most players come from the well healed sections of society, where obtaining an education before committing oneself to sport is the normal way of doing things.

In more recent times it has also become necessary for players to add strings to their bow, in order to live up to the expectations of demanding sponsors and advertisers, who want them to do everything from becoming businessmen to being recording artists.

Here we take a look at a certain strain of cricketer: those who aside from playing elite-level cricket like to turn their hand to music. Which ones have you heard in full flow?

Flintoff is just one of the major cricket stars who has been drawn to the recording studio, although hopefully he does not attempt too many more would-be smash hits

Freddie Flintoff – All-Rounder Turned Vocalist

Flintoff has already written himself into the history books as one of England’s greatest ever performers, and now he has fashioned himself into one of the nation’s most beloved television personalities, rubbing shoulders with celebrities on everything from gameshows to reality TV shows.

It was this newfound status as a mainstream celebrity that convinced someone somewhere to pair the cricketer up with Kaiser Chiefs’ front man Ricky Wilson, to create a football anthem for England’s 2018 World Cup campaign. The song was a remake of Boney M’s disco classic Rasputin. Unfortunately for the unlikely duo their track sank without a trace in the charts, meaning audiences were spared Flintoff’s rather cardboard stage presence and limited vocal range.

A lot of cricketers miss the roar of a live crowd once their playing careers are over and so search out the same buzz on the music scene

Mark Butcher – Singer-Songwriter Extraordinaire

Mark Butcher never really set the world alight with his batting, registering a rather uninspiring test average that lingered in the low to mid 30s, although he was operating around the time that some of the bowling greats like Muralitharan, Warne, and McGrath were strutting their stuff.

Once he hung his pads up for good, Butcher threw himself into commentary duties as well as his music, which is several levels above the attempts made by Flintoff and others. Not only has he released a widely praised album, Butcher has also entertained audiences as part of a UK-wide tour.

Dwayne Bravo – More Likes and Views Than Anyone Else

Hit up a music video platform like YouTube and plug in Dwayne Bravo’s name and you are more likely to see music videos featuring stars like Beenie Man and Nisha B, than highlights of Bravo dispatching balls for boundaries.

These collaborations have helped Bravo become without doubt the most successful cricketer-turned-performing artist with some of his tracks having racked up millions of listens and views online. Unsurprisingly, Bravo’s tunes often reverberate round stadiums in the Caribbean whenever the West indies are wowing their home crowds. He is still coming out with new tracks now, under the moniker of Dwayne DJ Bravo.

Sanjay Manjrekar – A Bengali Music Aficionado

Manjrekar was a more than useful batsmen in his time but has since become more known for his exploits as a commentator and TV panelist.

Away from the small screen, his one true passion outside of cricket is Bengali music. He has made good headway in this industry as well, landing himself a few vocal tracks on well-received Bengali movies.

Brett Lee – Has His Own Band

This legendary Australian fast-bowler is someone who throws himself into whatever endeavor he undertakes, and so when he took up music, he decided to form his very own band. Six & Out is its name, and they released a single that broke into the upper echelons of the charts in territories such as South Africa and India.

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