Hero worship is not just restricted to movies; there have been many sportsmen with Disney princes’ looks who have captured the imagination of the opposite gender. They might not be as smart as the heroes that act it out on screen but yes, some have even surpassed the handsome hunks with their looks, physique and machoism. Just like everyone (read men) loves Maria Sharapova or was a fan of Gabriela Sabatini at one time, women have had their favourites, too. From Fazal Mahmood to Imran Khan, Stefan Edberg to Roger Federer, Aisam-ul-Haq to Michael Jordan, men have loved female attention off the field … and their list continues to grow.

Bollywood film director Hrishikesh Mukherjee was famous for using names of sports personalities in his films — in Golmaal the hero Amol Palekar mentioned Pele, Islahuddin and Samiullah but that was for sporty reasons. It is the way Bollywood actress Rekha described the leading man Raj Babbar in Mukherjee’s Jhooti (1985) that got one’s attention:

Kia dashing personality hai I swear ... Saamne se dekho to Greek God, side se dekho to Imran Khan, chaal Robert Redford aur baal Omar Sharif!

Let’s look at some sportsmen also known for their movie-star charisma

(What a dashing personality I swear … If you look at him from the front, he resembles a Greek God, from the side he looks like Imran Khan, his way of walking reminds you of Robert Redford and he has hair like Omar Sharif’s)

In another movies Teesra Kaun, actor Chunky Pandey tells his sister that Imran Khan and Wasim Akram are famous because they have his ‘face’, and at that time, the lanky Pakistani left-arm pacer did resemble the Indian actor. Such has been Bollywood’s fascination with Pakistani cricketers which is sort of reciprocal because Pakistani men have fantasized about Indian beauties from Parveen Babi, Zeenat Aman, Hema Malini to Madhuri Dixit, Aishwariya Rai-Bachchan, Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone (whose father Prakash Padukone is a Badminton great in India). When Rekha and Imran Khan did attend one of the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Trust functions in Lahore in the early 1990s, late host Moin Akhtar replaced the word ladki with Rekha in his famous Abhi Tu Main Jawaan Hoon parody. Get the drift?

Historians say that after Pakistan cricket team’s historic win against England at The Oval in 1954, Fazal Mahmood became the ‘face of Pakistan’ in cricket-playing countries and when one female student was asked the location of Pakistan, she replied with ‘where Fazal lives’. With his light eyes, tall stature and broad shoulders, he could have been mistaken for a leading man and that may be the reason why he became the first sports model of the newly-created nation. Then came the dashing Majid Khan who was not only an excellent cricketer but his charisma stole the hearts of females wherever he went; his first cousin Imran Khan may have made his debut in 1971 but he was a heartthrob when the ’70s came to a close and carried the hunk tag till 1992. The victory in the final of the World Cup added to his personal appeal and had he not been a smart eligible-bachelor in his 40s, things might have turned out differently for the cancer hospital.

The 1990s saw the rise of Imran Khan’s successors — both on and off the field. Wasim Akram became a national hero after the World Cup victory but after the defeat at the hands of India four years later in the World Cup quarter final, Pakistan needed a hero who wouldn’t let down the nation — and in came Shahid Afridi. With his boyish looks and his chiseled features, Shahid Afridi became the unanimous poster boy for Pakistan and even 20 years later, people still love him for being himself. Yes, the Pathan hasn’t been a consistent performer but whenever he has performed, he has won hearts and praise. Some might debate that Shoaib Akhtar doesn’t fall into the category of handsome hunks but the speedster still has his followers. He appealed to those who believe ‘bad is good’ and throughout his career, he kept his fans entertained with his speed, his ‘appeal’ and his signature aeroplane-style of celebration.

Even across the border, India loved Mansoor Ali Khan ‘Tiger’ Pataudi for his ‘princely’ features. The real-life nawab may have injured his eye earlier in his career but he was one of the finest fielders and dashing cricketers India ever produced. He even managed to steal the heart of India’s then sweetheart Sharmila Tagore and they went on to have three kids, two of whom went on to become film stars — Saif Ali Khan and Soha Ali Khan. Cricketer-turned-commentator Ravi Shastri was once dating Bollywood star Amrita Singh whereas the whole of India was waiting for the current poster boy of Indian cricket Virat Kohli to pop the question to Bollywood starlet Anushka Sharma. The two had been dating for some time. Sadly it was not to be.

They say that everyone in the West has the looks of a film star but not everyone gets to play cricket is what they don’t say. Be it English cricketers Alistair Cook, Stuart Broad or Jimmy Anderson or their counterparts from Down Under — Daniel Vettori, Brendon McCullum and the retired Shane Bond and Nathan Astle — all could have easily been mistaken as Hollywood hunks had they not been popular as cricketers. Had Jonty Rhodes not been athletically cute when he ran out Inzamam-ul-Haq during the 1992 World Cup, people might have forgotten about him before the year was over — but they didn’t because he was Jonty Rhodes. And then there was Australia’s Brett Lee who continues to live his life fully — after demolishing batsmen on the pitch, he did manage to record songs, feature in a music video with the great Bollywood singer Asha Bhosle and even act in a couple of films including Bollywood venture Victory (as himself) and Australian flick unIndian (as the main lead). His predecessor Brendon Julien, who stood at six feet, six inches and represented Australia in the ’90s (seven Tests and 25 ODIs) is now a successful TV presenter but in his playing days, he could make women go weak in their legs despite being out of the playing XI.

Hockey players in Pakistan were treated as demigods in the 1960s and the 1970s but with the rise of cricket, hockey was relegated to second position. The game is still played as a hobby because professionalism is nowhere to be seen on the hockey field. The few players who managed to stand out due to their looks include former captains Samiullah Khan, Hasan Sardar and the world-record holder for most international goals Sohail Abbas. Samiullah still manages to draw crowds wherever he goes with his dashing personality; Hasan Sardar also hasn’t grown out of favour and continues to make fans due to his charm even today. Sohail Abbas lost his place in Pakistani sports due to his preference for hockey leagues but at one time, he was the face of Pakistan hockey which now sits at rock bottom, due to the policies of those at the helm.

Whenever a list of sexy sportsmen is compiled anywhere in the world, it features a substantial amount of men who play football; and despite being retired, David Beckham heads the list. With his ‘Clint Eastwood-ish features, the former English captain commands respect and love wherever he goes; the same can be said for Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, considered as men who matter. The Portuguese and the Argentinian may be rivals on the field but their carefully controlled physique and dashing personalities always get them a place in the handsome hunks list. There is also Scottish player Gareth Bale whose charisma isn’t limited to Great Britain and Spain’s Gerard Pique whose good looks captured the heart of Columbian beauty Shakira, loved by nearly everyone on Earth.

If you look at individual sports, there is tennis and tennis players; in the 1970s, Bjorn Borg was everyone’s favourite since he exuded confidence that was seldom displayed at that time. In the 1980s, Stefan Edberg became the ‘Tennis Man’ with his rugged looks, no-nonsense attitude and above all, his amazing likeness to television’s MacGyver played by Richard Dean Anderson. Fast forward to the ’90s and there was the ‘Oh my God handsome’ trio of Jim Courier, Andre Agassi and Peter Sampras who made women change their priorities with their performances on the court. While Courier was an All-American hunk, Agassi’s father migrated from Iran and Sampras looked like a Greek prince who dated and won over America’s sweetheart, the Hollywood actress Bridget Wilson. With the new millennium came new idols and while men might take Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal’s side on tennis grounds, women find them attractive otherwise, too. There is also our very own Aisam-ul-Haq who continues to rule the hearts of many women in Pakistan, especially since his divorce after a much-publicized wedding a few years back.

No piece on super sexy men can be complete without the mention of Michael Jordan, the American basketball great who even went on to star in Space Jam alongside Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and other Warner Brothers characters. He continues to garner fans wherever he goes because he played the game fair and square and hardly had bad stuff associated with him, making him the perfect role model for followers of sports. The same can’t be said of Tiger Woods whose infidelity cases ruined his reputation as a world-class golfer, who was once ranked as one of the wealthiest sportsmen on the planet. He had the looks to match his acumen but misguided priorities cost him his career.

Twitter: @omair78

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, February 21st, 2016