DECEMBER 10, 2020
MS Dhoni is one of the greatest captains that the Indian cricket team or the IPL has ever had. MS Dhoni is the only captain in the history of cricket to have won all three ICC trophies (World T20, World Cup and Champions Trophy) in his tenure.
In the Indian Premier League, MS Dhoni has helped Chennai Super Kings win the title three times while he has also helped the side win two Champions League T20 titles. In addition to the many bilateral series and Asia Cup titles, there is no doubting that MS Dhoni is the best. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are two names who are on par with MS Dhoni when it comes to greatness and fan appeal. However, there is one aspect that has put MS Dhoni way head of the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
According to an Inside Sports Money Ball report, MS Dhoni has an income of over Rs 137 crore from the Indian Premier League. As per the report, MS Dhoni emerged as the top draw in the IPL 2008 auction and joined Chennai Super Kings for USD 1.5 Million and he continued to earn the same amount in IPL 2009 and 2010 that he earned in IPL 2008. From IPL 2011 to 2013, he earned nearly Rs 8.2 crore. In 2014, the BCCI raised the first-choice retention fees to 12.5 crore. Hence, Dhoni earned that amount in IPL 2014 and 2015. At Rising Pune Supergiant as well, he earned the same amount for two years. Ahead of IPL 2018, the BCCI increased the first-choice retention price to Rs 15 crore. Hence, Dhoni has earned Rs 45 crore in the past three seasons. In total, he has earned over Rs 137 crore.
Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli behind
In comparison, Rohit Sharma earned Rs 3 crore during his time at Deccan Chargers – from 2008 to 2010. From 2011 to 2013, he earned Rs 9.2 crore at Mumbai Indians every year. Since he was the captain, Rohit became the first-choice retention player in IPL 2014 and his price was Rs 15 crore. Since then, he has been matching Dhoni’s amount every year. In total, he has earned over Rs 131 crore.
Virat Kohli comes next with an income of over Rs 126 crore. Back in 2008, Kohli was uncapped and was picked by Royal Challengers Bangalore at Rs 12 lakhs. He received the same amount in IPL 2009 and 2010. Virat Kohli was the only player that Royal Challengers Bangalore retained in IPL 2011 and he earned Rs 8.2 crore from 2011 to 2013. In 2014, he also joined the top bracket and received Rs 12.5 crore for the next four seasons. In IPL 2018, Virat Kohli shattered all past records by having a price of Rs 17 crore, which was Rs 2 crore more than the highest retention price. He has been receiving that price since 2018 and has earned Rs 51 crore in past three seasons.
However, MS Dhoni has once again shown who is the boss when it comes to the Indian cricket team.
Courtesy/Source: DNA
