Sports geniuses who dabbled in two different fields at the same time

#1 Andrea Pirlo

Did you know that Pirlo is not just the surname of Italian playmaker Andrea Pirlo, but also a traditional white wine in Italy? That explains a lot about his passion for wines.

The Juventus midfielder owns a vineyard near Brescia where around 20,000 bottles of wine are produced every year. He bought the vineyard in 2007, a year after he won the biggest prize in football – the FIFA World Cup.

Pratum Coller, which is the name of Pirlo’s estate, produces four wines: Eos, Nitor, Redeo and Arduo.

Speaking about his passion for wine, Pirlo had this to say: “My grandmother had a vineyard here, and as a child I came with my relatives to help with the grape harvest. I’ve always drunk wine, ever since I was little and my mother mixed a little of it with water for me. I like to read about wine, to understand it, to try wines from other regions, other labels.”

#2 Brett Lee

Former Australian speedster Brett Lee was among the most entertaining cricketers in the world during his playing career, giving unbridled joy to cricket lovers around the world with his supreme pace bowling ability. His talents were not just restricted to cricket though, with the 38-year-old also known to be a fairly talented musician.

During the 2006 Champions Trophy in India, Lee collaborated with eminent Indian singer Asha Bhosle for the song ‘You’re the One for Me’. The song became a huge hit and reached as high as No. 2 in the Indian music charts. Part of the rock band ‘Six & Out’, Lee has also made fleeting appearances in Bollywood films in recent years.

#3 Novak Djokovic

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic has established himself as the leading tennis player in the world over the last few years, which is no mean feat when you have all-time greats like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal competing alongside you. One of the standout features of Djokovic's personality is his single-minded focus and determination to be the best he can possibly be.

Aside from tennis, the Serb has been doing extremely well in other fields too. He started his own business named 'Family Sport' in Serbia, which initially only worked in the restaurant business but is now also into other activities like real estate and entertainment. He also owns Novak Cafe, which is a sports-themed cafe in his hometown of Belgrade.

#4 Kobe Bryant

Arguably the greatest basketball player since Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant will probably look back on his career in the years to come with immense satisfaction. Apart from achievements like winning the NBA championship five times and the MVP for the NBA finals twice, he has also dabbled in other fields like music and business with decent success.

In the year 2011, the 36-year-old featured in Taiwanese singer Jay Chou's single "The Heaven and Earth Challenge". The proceeds from the music video of the single went to poverty-stricken schools, with the intention of using the money to build basketball facilities.

Bryant has also established his own company named Kobe Inc., which aims to encourage and promote brands in the sports industry.

#5 Denis Compton

Denis Compton is one of the greatest English cricketers ever, to put it mildly. He is one of the few English batsmen to have an average of over 50 in Test cricket. An ICC hall of fame inductee, the former Middlesex captain is one of only 25 batsmen to have scored over a hundred centuries in first-class cricket.

While starring for his country in international cricket, Compton also had a reasonably successful footballing career at Arsenal, which is considered to be one of the biggest clubs in England. Playing as a winger, he won the FA Cup in 1950, to go with a league title in 1948 with the North London side. He never played an official international football match because of World War II, a period during which no official matches were played.

In a cricket match in 1946, Compton showed his footballing skills when he ran Vijay Merchant out by kicking the ball on to the stumps from mid-on.

#6 Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli is one of the biggest names in modern-day cricket. The only batsman to be ranked in the top 10 in the ICC rankings for batsmen across all three formats of the game, Kohli has time and again exhibited his dominance over bowlers with the right mixture of arrogance and panache.

Last November, the Indian Test captain, in association with Anjana Reddy's Universal Sportsbiz (USPL), launched the men’s casual wear brand WROGN. There are reports that the brand will soon launch clothing for women too.

Kohli has also invested in sports-based social media platform Sport Convo, which is set to launch soon.

#7 Andrei Arshavin

Russia’s pride Andrey Sergeyevich Arshavin, better known as Andrei Arshavin, has definitely proved his mettle as a professional footballer to the world. But did you know that the former Arsenal superstar holds a degree in fashion designing too?

Arshavin is known to be a designer of women’s clothes, and he even has his own clothing line with products ranging from formal dresses to sportswear.

Enrolled into St. Petersburg State University of Technology and Design at the age of 17, Arshavin studied chemical technology there. However, he later switched courses to take up sewing at the university, because according to him: “There were lots of girls among the students.”

#8 Asamoah Gyan

When Asamoah Gyan is not busy playing football, you'll probably find him at a music studio recording music, or shooting for a pop videos. In the summer of 2010, he recorded his first single under the alias ‘Baby Jet’ with ace Ghanaian musician Theophilus Tagoe a.k.a. Castro the Destroyer; the single was titled 'African Girls'.

Interestingly, the song went on to win an award at the Ghana Music awards in 2011.

It wasn’t long until Gyan started receiving requests to perform at parties; he was even invited to former Sunderland boss Steve Bruce’s wife’s birthday party at a club in England to perform.

Gyan's other works as a musician include Do Da Dance, Oda Pa and Accelerator Down.

#9 Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan is one of the greatest sportspersons of all time. Considered by many to be the greatest basketball player ever, Jordan also enjoyed a lot of success off the basketball court; he was one of the most marketed sportsmen of his generation.

The former Chicago Bulls shooting guard tried his hand at acting in the 1996 film 'Space Jam'. The film, inspired by a Super Bowl XXVI ad featuring Jordan and Bugs Bunny, pitted the NBA star alongside Looney Tunes characters, and opened at #1 in the United States of America.

Air Jordan, a brand produced by Jordan and Nike, is one of the most popular sports shoes and clothing brands in the world.

#10 Gerard Pique

Following Spain’s early elimination from the 2014 FIFA World Cup, defender Gerard Pique was seen taking part in the annual World Series of Poker in Las Vegas. Pique, who was up 140,000 in chips at the tournament, was knocked out by American player Michael Aron at the end of the second day.

Pique is an avid poker player, and has made career earnings of about $87,288, holding the 143rd spot on the Spanish all-time money list. Many expect him to become a full-time poker player after he retires from football.