Every game’s popularity is determined by the game’s fanbase. However, there are several performers who have a significant impact and contribute to its globalization. The competitive performances of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were crucial in the expansion of football in Africa and South Asia. Although cricket is not widely popular in Europe, North America, or Africa, some players have an extensive following on Instagram.
Virat Kohli has one of the most Instagram followers of any cricket player. He has around 256 million Instagram followers and ranks among the top ten most followed sportsmen in the world. In this article, we will reveal the top seven most followed cricket players on Instagram.
Virat Kohli – 256 million
Virat Kohli stands first on the list of the top 7 most followed cricketers on Instagram, with a following of 256 million. He is the only Indian and Asian athlete to cross this milestone. Besides sharing his cricket journey, he keeps posting about his life. Kohli has a cheeky nickname of “Cheeku.”
He was born and raised in New Delhi and started his cricket career with the Delhi Under 15 cricket team. Then, he made his international cricket debut in 2008 and became a crucial player for the Indian cricket team and eventully get the title of 2nd god of cricket in India. In 2013, Kohli was awarded the number one spot in the ICC cricket rankings for ODI batsmen and led Indian Team in Test, ODI and T20I.
He is married to one of the most popular actresses in Bollywood, Anushka Sharma. Which even made him popular.
He posts consistently on Instagram about his personal and professional life, including his training and workout sessions. Kohli always loves to engage with his followers in the comment sections.
With all this fame, he charges $ 1,384,000 per sponsored Instagram post. He has partnered with many brands, including Puma, Audi, and MRF. He also engages with the platform to promote his co-founded brand, One8.
Read More: Why Virat Kohli is So Famous?
MS Dhoni – 45 million
MS Dhoni seconds the list of Instagram’s top 7 most followed cricketers with 45 million followers. His full name is Mahendra Singh Dhoni, known as “Mahi”.
He is an Indian cricketer and remained the captain of the Indian National Team for many years. Mahi is considered one of the best cricket captains ever and gained the nickname “Captain Cool”.
Dhoni was born in 1981 in Bihar and joined the Commando Cricket Club as a regular wicketkeeper. Later on, he was chosen for the Vinoo Mankad Trophy Under-16 Championship. He made his One Day International debut in 2004 and gained the ODI captaincy in 2007. Dhoni stayed the captain of the Indian national team in limited-overs formats from 2007 to 2017 and in Test cricket from 2008 to 2014. Under his captaincy, India won the 2010 & 2016 Asia Cup, the 2010 & 2011 ICC Test Mace, and the 2013 ICC ODI Championship. He has achieved a total of 17,266 runs in International Cricket.
After a successful career of 16 years, he retired from International Cricket. Then, he indulged in organic farming and even owned a farm known as Eeja, which is in Jharkhand, India.
Dohni mostly posts about his friends & family and his farm. He also loves to share adorable videos of his pets and daughter, Ziva.
With a vast 45 million followers, he charges INR 1,44,47,726.04 per post for paid promotion and has collaborated with many brands like Cars24, Colgate, GoDaddy, and more.
Sachin Tendulkar – 42 million
Next on the list is Sachin Tendulkar, with 42 million followers on Instagram. He is a former Indian international cricketer who also captained the Indian national team 2 times in different seasons. He earned the title “Little Master” from famous cricketer Sunil Gavaskar because of his excellent batting and leadership. Sachin is also known as “Master Blaster” for his supremacy in international cricket for almost two decades.
He was born and raised in Mumbai, India, in 1973 and debuted in Test match cricket in 1989 at sixteen. Wisden ranked Sachin as the second-best Test batsman of all time and the second-greatest ODI batsman of all time. He was named “Player of the Tournament” in the 2003 World Cup and owned India’s highest civilian award, “Bharat Ratna.” Sachin also made it to the annual list of the most influential people in the world in 2010.
Sachin announced his retirement from all forms of cricket in 2013 after playing his 200th Test match. He played 664 International cricket matches and scored 34,357 runs throughout his career. In 2019, his name was included in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. In 2012, he was nominated by President Pratibha Patil to the Rajya Sabha and took his oath of office on 4 June.
Read More: Sachin Tendulkar Centuries List
He loves to share his personal life updates with his fans through his Instagram. An estimated cost for his one paid post is $2K – $20K, and he has been associated with many bands like Unacademy, Paytm, Spinny, Tanishq, and more.
Rohit Sharma – 30 million
Rohit Sharma is a 36-year-old Indian International cricketer who is currently the captain of the Indian men’s cricket team in all formats. He is known for his excellent batting and leadership skills. Rohit is also known as a “Hitman” for his power-hitting skills.
He was born on 30 April 1987 in Nagpur, Maharashtra, India, and joined a cricket camp in 1999 and made his international debut in 2007. He is also the captain of Mumbai Indians, and the team has achieved five titles under his captainship. Rohit is the only player to score three double-centuries in One Day International matches. Moreover, he has also won the ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year award for scoring hundreds in a single Cricket World Cup in 2019. He also achieved the national Arjuna Award in 2015 and the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award in 2018.
Apart from his cricket career, he is the official Rhino Ambassador for WWF-India and actively supports animal welfare campaigns in India. He also worked with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) to raise awareness about India’s poor state of stray cats and dogs.
He frequently posts about his family and professional life on his Instagram to share his lifestyle with his 29.5M fan following. But he has also endorsed many companies like Glenmark Pharma, IIFL Finance, Oakley, and Noise, charging INR 76,01,638.62 for a paid Instagram post.
Hardik Pandya – 27 million
Hardik Himanshu Pandya is an Indian Cricketer and Captain of the Indian Cricket Team in T20I. He is an all-round batter and has represented the Indian team in all three formats. He has a surprising nickname, “Hairy”, because of his unusual hairstyle choices and is also referred to as “Kung-Fu Pandya” because of his fantastic all-rounder performances. Even his wife referred to him as Kung-fu Pandya once.
Read More: Hardik Pandya Captaincy Records
He was born on 11 October 1993 in Choryasi, Surat, Gujarat, India, and he dropped out of school after 9th grade to focus on his cricket career and joined a junior-level cricket club. Hardik made his One Day International debut in 2016 and became the fourth Indian player to be named Player Of The Match on his ODI debut. He made his T20 International debut in 2016 at the age of 22. In 2022, he became India’s captain for their T20 International matches. On 7 July 2022, he became the first Indian player to score a half-century and took four wickets in a single T20 International match.
He married famous dancer, model, and actress Natasa Stankovic in 2020 and had a baby boy named Agastya on 30 July 2020.
He loves sharing his family life with his fans through his social media and has 26.6 million followers on Instagram. Hardik has also endorsed many brands, including Sin Denim, boAt, Gulf Oil India, and Hala Play. He charges INR 65,94,622.80 per post for paid promotions through his Instagram.
Suresh Raina – 25 million
Suresh Raina is a 36-year-old Indian former international Indian cricketer. He also served the Indian men’s national cricket team as a stand-in captain several times and in IPL for Chennai Super Kings during the absence of the main captain. Thus, he was given the nickname “Chinna Thala” by his South Indian fans, meaning “Right hand of leader” in Tamil. Suresh was also called “Mr IPL” because of his excellent performance in the Indian Premier League. He has been called “Sonu” since his childhood.
Suresh Raina was born and raised in a Kashmiri Pandit family in Muradnagar, Uttar Pradesh, India. In 2000, he moved to Lucknow to attend the Guru Gobind Singh Sports College and soon became the Uttar Pradesh under-sixteens cricket team captain. He made his Ranji Trophy debut in 2003 at the age of 16. In 2010, he was awarded the “best fielder” by the BCCI. Suresh was also named in the Cricinfo CLT20 XI for his performances in 2013. On the 10th anniversary of IPL, Raina was also named in the All-time Cricinfo IPL XI. He is also the second youngest cricket player ever to captain the Indian team and the first Indian batsman to hit a century in all three formats of international cricket.
Raina announced his retirement from all formats of international cricket on 15 August 2020, while on 6 September 2022, he officially announced his retirement from all forms of cricket but is now planning to play in the UAE and South African T20 leagues.
With his solid 25 Million followers on Instagram, Suresh comes sixth on the list of the most followed Cricketers on Instagram and frequently shares his personal and professional life upgrades with his fans through social media. He also does paid promotions for brands and estimated charges INR 40,000,00 per post on his Instagram.
AB de Villiers – 23 million
AB de Villiers is a 39-year-old former South African international cricketer. His full name is Abraham Benjamin de Villiers, and he is also called “ABD” as it is the acronym of his name. He is still considered one of his era’s most incredible cricket batters. De Villiers was named “Mr.360” for his skills to play all around the wicket and was also called “Superman” for his acrobatic fielding skills.
Abraham Benjamin was born in Warmbad, South Africa, in 1984. His father played rugby union in his youth. He encouraged his son to play sports, so he debuted for the Northern team in the 2003-2004 Supersport Series and began his international career in cricket as a wicket-keeper-batsman. He is known for his unorthodox shots, especially behind the wicketkeeper. De Villiers debuted in T20 International cricket in 2006 and was named ICC ODI Player of the Year 3 times during his international career. He also made the world record for the fastest 100 and 150 in One-Day Internationals. In 2021, he announced his retirement from cricket after a successful career of 17 years.
With his 22.5 Million fans following, he comes seventh on Instagram’s list of the most followed cricketers worldwide. He regularly keeps his fans updated about his life. He charges USD 78,200 per paid post and has endorsed many international brands like Puma, MontBlanc, Myntra, Cameo, and more.
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