Report: Mustafa Ali Originally Scheduled To Work WWE Survivor Series

Mustafa Ali and wife Uzma announced the birth of their third child on November 24, naming their daughter Dua. 

Fightful Select reported following the news that Ali had asked for a couple of weeks off for paternity leave "long ago", a request that was approved by WWE, which is why he had missed the last couple of SmackDown episodes. The former Heart Of 205 Live hasn't appeared on WWE TV since a two-minute loss to Drew McIntyre on the October 29 edition of SmackDown.

Ali was also internally scheduled to be at Survivor Series as an entrant in the Pizza Hut-sponsored 25-Man Dual Brand Battle Royal but WWE felt they had more than enough Superstars available and extended the 35-year-old's leave. 

Kofi Kingston also recently announced the birth of his child, and Fightful confirmed the former WWE Champion's paternity leave had been approved by the company too. Kingston was recently written off TV following an attack from The Bloodline on November 5 which left Kofi with an MCL sprain, according to a storyline medical update.