Thom Evans has “hit the jackpot” with Nicole Scherzinger.

The 36-year-old hunk has been dating the Pussycat Dolls singer since they met in 2019 on ‘The X Factor: Celebrity’ – on which he competed as part of

rugby singing group Tristar and she was a judge – and he joked the 43-year-old star is out of his league.

He said: “Nobody is asking Nicole how she got with me because I’m massively punching (above my weight).

“She’s so easy and fun to be around. I’ve hit the jackpot.”

After previously dating the likes of Kelly Brook, Jessica Lowndes and Caggie Dunlop, Thom insisted his relationship with the ‘Poison’ hitmaker is nothing like he’s had before.

He gushed: “People always say, ‘When you know, you know’ and I can honestly say I’d never really had that moment. But within the first couple of days with Nicole it was just awesome and it has been awesome ever since.”

The pair hit it off when Thom went to Nicole’s dressing room to thank her for saving his act on the show, but he insisted he wouldn’t have dreamt of asking her out if they hadn’t got along so well during the brief intraction.

Speaking on ‘The Growth Show’ podcast, he said: “It wasn’t even in my thought process to try it on with Nicole because it would have been unprofessional and she’s so lovely and stunning in every possible way. I was just like, ‘She’s out of my league’.

“It was only after we sang an awkward performance of ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’ and she kindly saved us in the show that we as a band went up to her dressing room to thank her.

“That was the first time I met her and I’ve never looked back.”

And the sportsman credited advice from his grandmother for helping the couple get together.

He said: “‘If you don’t ask, you don’t get’, my grandma used to say, and it’s helped me in my life so many times — not just in ­situations regarding girls. I’ve got so many things from when I’ve simply plucked up the courage.

“But with Nicole, I just didn’t think sliding into her DMs would be the done thing.

“In my mind, if I’d done that I’d clearly have got rejected and it would have just been a bit awkward and weird.

“I’m really grateful that it happened naturally. It was just an intimate first meeting and nice to meet her that way.”