| MUMBAI:
Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the top-earning cricketer in the world,
indicating that advertisers not only back India when it comes to cricket but also
they are keen to identify younger popular faces that appeal to the youth.
Dhoni, who runs
in Reebok’s and Pepsi’s ad campaigns, has mopped up $10 million over
the last 12 months while four other Indian players make it to the Forbes’
list of the 10 top-earning cricketers in the world. Sachin
Tendulkar occupies the second spot with earnings of $8 million, followed by Yuvraj
Singh ($5.5 million) and Rahul Dravid ($5 million). “Paycheck
figures include club and national team salaries and commercial endorsement income
over the last 12 months,” according to Forbes. England's
Andrew Flintoff is fifth in the ranking with $4 million. Sourav Ganguly and Australian
cricketer Ricky Ponting shared the sixth place with $3.5 million.
Brett
Lee and Kevin Pietersen are tied in eighth place with $3 million while Michael
Clarke is ranked 10th ($2.5 million). The
cash-rich Indian Premier League has particularly shored up the earnings of the
cricketers. “With its deep-pocketed owners and global appeal, the IPL has
shaken up professional cricket, luring top players from five continents with paychecks
as big as $1,11,000 for each three-hour matcvh. That’s a stunning sum in
a sport where domestic leagues have traditionally been an afterthought to the
international version of the game. For the top stars, endorsements are the most
lucrative source of revenue,” Forbes said.
No wonder Clarke is
the only one in the list who is not part of the IPL. | 
