Bollywood's Shah Rukh Khan invests in American cricket

After buying teams in the multi-billion-dollar cricketing tournaments, Indian Premier League (IPL) and the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has invested in the future of American cricket.

Shah Rukh's Knight Riders Group has bought the Los Angeles franchise that is slated to play in the upcoming Major League Cricket in the US. Bollywood actress Juhi Chawla and her husband Jay Mehta are co-owners of the Knight Riders Group.

In a statement on Tuesday, 55-year-old Shah Rukh said, "For several years now, we have been expanding the Knight Riders brand globally and closely watching the potential for T20 cricket in the USA."

"We are convinced that Major League Cricket has all the pieces in place to execute on its plans and we look forward to making our partnership an enormous success in the coming years," the superstar, also known as King Khan, added.

Cricket in the US is a sport played at the amateurs, clubs, intercollegiate and international competition levels with little popularity.

Venky Mysore, CEO of Knight Riders Group, said, "As T20 cricket expands internationally, we are flattered by the regular inbound requests to play a major role in growing the sport abroad. Our expansion into the US is consistent with our long-term strategy."

Shah Rukh, who began his acting career with appearances in several TV series in the late 1980s, made his Bollywood debut in 1992. He has acted in over 80 films in his nearly 30-year career.

Early in his career, Shah Rukh was recognised for portraying villainous roles in the films, Baazigar (1993), Darr (1993), and Anjaam (1994). However, he shot to fame in a romantic blockbuster, 'Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge', in 1995.

After a series of hits from 1997 to 200, he went on to earn critical acclaim for his portrayal of an alcoholic in 'Devdas' (2002), a NASA scientist in 'Swades' (2004), a hockey coach in 'Chak De! India' (2007) and a man with Asperger syndrome in 'My Name Is Khan' (2010).

Apart from the two cricket teams, Shah Rukh owns motion picture production company, Red Chillies Entertainment. He is also a frequent television presenter and stage show performer.