Former India cricketer Ravi Shastri hailed Real Madrid attacker Jude Bellingham ahead of the toss of a The Hundred game between Birmingham Phoenix and Welsh Fire on Sunday (August 2).
Bellingham owns a 12% stake, worth around £1 million, in the Phoenix, who lost by seven wickets after posting 137-9, with Joe Clarke scoring 35, while his namesake Joe Root’s unbeaten 58 took the Fire home.
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Bellingham is coming off a fabulous 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign in the USA, Canada and Mexico, becoming the first Englishman to score seven times at a single edition as the Three Lions finished third.
Shastri hailed the Los Blancos attacker for his World Cup exploits as he posted two pictures with Bellingham and tweeted:
“Great to have Birmingham’s own galactico in the house for the toss at The Hundred. What a player! What a World Cup! Class written all over him. Good luck for the season ahead!”
Bellingham, who entertained the crowd after the game by playing a few shots against spinner Usman Tariq, said after buying a minority stake in the Birmingham Phoenix (as per Cricinfo):
“I love Birmingham. I’m very grateful for what the whole city of Birmingham has done for me. I love cricket as well, so when I got the opportunity to get involved I didn’t really think twice about it, so I’m so happy to be on board.”
Bellingham is back at Madrid for pre-season training following his World Cup heroics as Los Blancos look to wn their first title in three seasons under new boss Jose Mourinho, who had an earlier stint between 2010 and 2013.
How have Jude Bellingham’s Real Madrid fared in pre-season?
Real Madrid kickstarted their 2026 pre-season with a 1-0 victory over Alcorcon on July 24 at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano, with Daniel Yanez scoring the game’s only goal from the spot.
Jose Mourinho’s side then beat CD Leganes 4-1, with Federico Valverde, Franco Mastantuano and Gonzalo Garcia getting on the scoresheet, before drawing 2-2 with ACF Fiorentina on Saturday (August 1).
Jude Bellingham and Co. next take on Ferencvaros TC in Budapest on Saturday (August 8) before taking on Deportivo La Coruna four days later. Real Madrid end their pre-season against FC Schalke 04 in Gelsenkirchen on August 16.
Edited by Bhargav
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