Jinder Mahal believes Sami Zayn is delivering character work at a level few performers in WWE can currently match.
Speaking on Busted Open, Mahal offered extensive praise for the current Undisputed WWE Champion, focusing on the unusual audience response Zayn has been generating. In Mahal’s view, Zayn has found a compelling balance: the champion’s words and actions can carry the qualities of a babyface, yet audiences are still responding to him with boos.
That contradiction is central to why Mahal sees Zayn’s current presentation as so effective. Rather than relying on a simple good-guy or bad-guy framework, Zayn is operating in a space where the reaction from the crowd becomes part of the story. Mahal said that kind of layered work has been missing from WWE for years.
“The character work that Sami Zayn is doing, I haven’t seen this in years,” Mahal said. “Where everything he’s saying and his actions, he’s a babyface by nature.”
For more background on this topic, read Charlie Dempsey Says AJPW Triple Crown Run Built His Confidence in NXT.
Mahal pointed to Zayn being booed during his entrance as evidence of the dynamic surrounding the Undisputed WWE Champion. The reaction is especially notable because Mahal does not see Zayn’s conduct as traditionally villainous by nature. Instead, he views Zayn as a performer whose character is capable of making the audience feel differently depending on the setting, the opponent and the stakes of the moment.
A Crowd Reaction That Can Change With the Location
For Mahal, the possibility of shifting crowd responses is not a weakness in Zayn’s act. It is one of its greatest strengths. He compared the situation to Bret Hart’s famously divided reception in 1998, when Hart could be embraced in one place and rejected in another.
“On his entrance, the crowd was booing him,” Mahal said. “They were booing him, but I think this is one of those situations, like Bret Hart in Canada, I believe it was 1998, where he gets cheered in one spot and then booed in the other.”
That comparison underscores the importance Mahal places on emotional context. A wrestler who receives the exact same response in every city can be easy for viewers to categorize. Zayn, in Mahal’s estimation, is generating something less predictable. The crowd may reject him in one environment, while another audience may greet him far more warmly because of its own connection to him and the story being told.
Saudi Arabia could provide one of the next major tests of that idea. Zayn is scheduled to challenge Roman Reigns for the Crown Jewel Championship in Saudi Arabia, and Mahal expects the champion to receive a major reaction there. He also suggested that Zayn could receive a similar reception in Canada.
“When he goes to Saudi, I’m expecting a big reaction, big reception, perhaps even in Canada the same,” Mahal said.
The prospect of Zayn being received differently across markets adds another dimension to his championship story. Mahal’s comments do not frame that possibility as a sudden character change. Instead, they point to the audience’s existing relationship with Zayn and how the setting can alter the tone around him. That makes the champion’s upcoming appearances particularly significant, since WWE crowds may reveal different sides of the same character without requiring Zayn to abandon the traits that have defined this run.
Mahal Places Zayn Alongside Roman Reigns
Mahal’s strongest praise came when he placed Zayn near the very top of WWE’s current character landscape. He said Zayn’s work ranks with that of Roman Reigns and “946,” making clear that he sees the Undisputed WWE Champion as one of the most effective acts on television.
“This character work that Sami is doing, besides 946 and Roman, it’s the best thing on television,” Mahal said.
It is a notable endorsement from a former WWE Champion, particularly with Zayn headed into a major match against Reigns. The two men share a long history as former friends, which gives their Crown Jewel Championship encounter an emotional foundation beyond the title itself. Their latest issue intensified after Zayn demanded respect from Reigns on a recent edition of WWE Raw.
That demand establishes the key tension entering the match. Zayn is not merely trying to defeat Reigns in a championship contest; he is confronting someone whose recognition clearly matters to him. Mahal’s assessment of Zayn’s work suggests that the value of the program lies in that emotional conflict. Zayn’s character is being defined not only by what he says, but by why he says it and by how audiences choose to interpret it.
Reigns, meanwhile, is the opponent Mahal believes should control the physical side of the story at Crown Jewel. Mahal argued that Zayn should enter the match with little apparent chance of victory. In his view, presenting “The Tribal Chief” as dominant and placing Zayn in the underdog role would give Zayn the strongest environment in which to continue developing the character.
The Case for an Underdog Sami Zayn Against Reigns
Mahal’s proposed direction is built around contrast. Zayn is the Undisputed WWE Champion, but Mahal believes the character would benefit from being treated as vulnerable against Reigns. The former WWE Champion said Reigns should dominate the contest, leaving Zayn to fight from underneath.
That approach would put the focus on Zayn’s resilience and his need to prove himself against a former friend who has become one of WWE’s defining figures. Mahal’s point is not that Zayn should be presented as insignificant. Rather, he believes the uncertainty around Zayn’s chances is essential to creating the right emotional stakes.
It also fits Mahal’s broader argument about Zayn’s current work. If the audience is already responding to him in complicated ways, an underdog performance against Reigns could sharpen those reactions further. Fans who have booed Zayn may still be drawn into his struggle when Reigns is in control. Fans who are inclined to support him could become even more invested as the match develops. The story, as Mahal sees it, works best when Zayn has to overcome an imposing obstacle rather than simply walk into the bout as an equal favorite.
There is an inherent tension in that scenario because Zayn enters as champion. He carries the Undisputed WWE Championship, yet Mahal is advocating for a match structure that emphasizes how difficult it will be for him to survive Reigns. That contrast can be a powerful tool in wrestling storytelling: titleholder status provides prestige, while the underdog position supplies jeopardy.
Mahal’s comments show that he believes Zayn has the range to make that tension feel authentic. A performer needs more than championship gold to sustain such a role. He needs the audience to understand the emotion behind the confrontation, and Mahal clearly feels Zayn has achieved that through the nuances of his present character.
Williams Rivalry Could Still Have More to Give
Mahal also addressed Zayn’s rivalry with Williams, which ended with their match being decided by disqualification. The finish left open the possibility that the issue could be revisited, and Mahal said he is interested in seeing whether WWE returns to it.
A disqualification conclusion often leaves a feud without the sense of total finality that comes from a clear pinfall or submission, and Mahal’s comments reflect that the Zayn-Williams program may still have unresolved potential. There is no confirmation that the rivalry will resume, but the result gives WWE room to pick it back up if the company chooses.
That possibility matters because Zayn’s current character work is not confined to one opponent. Mahal’s praise was about the champion’s overall ability to take viewers through a journey and reveal different aspects of himself. A continued issue with Williams could provide another setting for that evolution, while the looming showdown with Reigns represents a much larger emotional test.
For now, the clearest focus is Crown Jewel. Zayn has demanded respect from Reigns, and he will face his former friend for the Crown Jewel Championship in Saudi Arabia. Mahal expects the environment to produce a strong response for Zayn, even after the boos that have accompanied the champion elsewhere.
Whether the Saudi Arabian audience cheers, boos or delivers a more mixed reaction, Mahal believes Zayn has already accomplished something rare. He has created a character that cannot be reduced to a straightforward label, one whose reception may transform from city to city while his motivations remain recognizable. With Reigns waiting at Crown Jewel, Mahal sees the next chapter as an opportunity for Zayn to reinforce why he regards the Undisputed WWE Champion as one of the best character performers in wrestling today.
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Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.