The very mention of the Indian Premier League (IPL) sends the pulse racing. IPL is all about glam, glitz and excitement. The IPL has made unknown cricketers instant household names. The event has brought into limelight many players who have never even played for India. However, most importantly, the IPL has contributed in making the financial lives of cricketers comfortable. It has made them financially stable. Orissa POST takes a look at the 10 cricketers who have earned the maximum while playing in the IPL.
Robin Uthappa
The Bangalore-based cricketer has so far earned Rs 75 crore by playing for various franchises in the IPL and occupies the 10th slot. The wicket-keeper batsman started his IPL career with Mumbai Indians (MI). He has also played for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), Pune Warriors (PW) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). In the recently concluded edition of the IPL, Uthappa was seen in Rajasthan Royals (RR) colours. However, he did not have a very successful IPL.
Shane Watson
The Australian has so far earned Rs 77 crore for his exploits in the IPL and is in ninth position among the top earners. Watson started his career with RR. He has also played for RCB before shifting to Chennai Super Kings (CSK). This year also he was a member of CSK even though he could not put up a satisfactory performance.
Sunil Narine
With Rs 82 crore in earnings, Sunil Narine occupies the eighth slot. The West Indian started his IPL career in 2012 with KKR. He has been with KKR since then.
Yuvraj Singh
The flamboyant left-handed all-rounder has been one of the top earners in the IPL. He occupies the seventh position with an earning of Rs 84 crore. Yuvraj has played for teams like KXIP, PW, RCB, Delhi Daredevils (DD), Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and MI.
AB de Villiers
Popularly known the world over as ABD, the South African has earned Rs 91 crore from the IPL. He occupies the sixth slot among the top earners. De Villiers has played mostly for RCB, though he represented DD for a short time.
Gautam Gambhir
The cricketer-turned-politician is in fifth position with a total earning of Rs 94 crore. All through his IPL career, Gambhir played for DD and KKR. Most of his successes were with KKR only. It was under his captaincy, KKR won the IPL twice.
Suresh Raina
The left-handed dasher with Rs 99 crore occupies the fourth position among top earners. He has played mostly for CSK. The two years the franchise was banned, Raina represented the Gujarat Lions (GL). However, 2020 IPL was not good for him. Even before the event started, he quit the CSK team hotel to come back to India.
Virat Kohli
All through his career Virat Kohli has played for RCB and has earned Rs 126 crore to be in third position. Kohli achieved the 5,000-run milestone in IPL last year. The Indian skipper is the second cricketer to achieve the feat, the first being Raina.
Rohit Sharma
The skipper of Mumbai Indians has so far earned Rs 131 crore playing for MI and the now defunct Deccan Chargers. Rohit has been instrumental for MI in winning the IPL crown five times. He is the second highest among the earners.
MS Dhoni
You guessed it right. The former Indian skipper tops the list of IPL earners with Rs 137 crore. He has been the skipper in all editions of IPL. Under him CSK won the IPL crown in 2010, 2011, 2018. The two years CSK were banned Dhoni donned the colours of Rising Pune Supergiants (RPS).
