The Undertaker to Return at Greatest Royal Rumble

WWE announced on Wednesday that the Undertaker will take part in the Greatest Royal Rumble event that the company has scheduled for April 27 in Saudi Arabia.

Undertaker, who returned to WWE this past Sunday at WrestleMania 34 with a win over John Cena, will face Rusev in a casket match on the show, which will air on WWE Network at noon E.T. The Greatest Royal Rumble is being held at King Abdullah International Stadium. The event is part of a 10-year partnership between WWE and Saudi Arabia.

Undertaker wrestled a short, and nearly bump-free match against Cena on Sunday at WrestleMania 34. Undertaker had control, brawled a bit and looked good doing it in short spurts. My guess is that the same will be true this time around against Rusev, in a casket match, where things develop more as a walking brawl than an actual wrestling match.

At 52, with a lot of miles on his body, that’s what Undertaker needs to do at this point. That’s just going to be the type of match he has to have.

What’s more interesting about this announcement is that WWE seems to have no issues sacrificing Rusev for Undertaker. Rusev has been getting over on SmackDown Live, with his “Rusev Day” gimmick and shirts catching steam the last few months. He’s getting babyface reactions, and that could pose a problem against Undertaker.

That being said, WWE expects a friendlier crowd in Saudi Arabia, even if there are going to by 60,000 people in attendance. You can tell — by booking Reigns vs. Lesnar in a rematch — that they are expecting more a crowd that goes along with the storylines, booing the heels and cheering the babyfaces.

That will be one of the biggest storylines to watch during this show … will the crowd cooperate?

Also, where does Undertaker go from here? He looked tired and beat up against Roman Reigns last year at WrestleMania in a long, far more grueling match. But he looked terrific against Cena this past Sunday. Has WWE found a formula that might allow them to use Undertaker more frequently?