Good Sports: FROM BASEBALL TO WRESTLING
If the name “Rinku Singh” rings a bell, you probably watched the movie Million Dollar Arm or read our inspiring cover story of two young Indian men who won a baseball pitching contest and came to America in 2008 to try to impress Major League Baseball scouts. Singh and Dinesh Patel eventually played minor league baseball, making history as the first Indians to play the sport professionally.
Singh, who was once a track and field athlete, enjoyed a minor league career that lasted several years, ending in 2015. Sports Illustrated recently featured him in its regular “Where Are They Now” series, showing his amazing resilience in sports.
The 6-foot-4 Singh is now 255 pounds and aspiring for a career in professional wrestling. In January, he signed a contract with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and made his debut on May 31, losing a match to Kassius Ohno.
“I’ve been through a lot in my journey, and I’ve learned from it,” Singh told SI. “I have a lot of examples where I didn’t believe in myself and it didn’t matter how hard I worked, it didn’t happen. If I believe in myself, and if you’re totally committed that you’re going to make it happen, it’s going to happen for you.”
Compiled and partly written by Indian humorist MELVIN DURAI, author of the novel Bala Takes the Plunge.
[Comments? Contributions? Please email us at melvin@melvindurai.com. We welcome jokes, quotes, online clips, and more.]
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