Former India head coach Ravi Shastri recently made headlines with his candid remarks about the earnings of India’s cricketing superstars. Speaking on the Stick To Cricket Podcast, Shastri responded to a question from former England captain Michael Vaughan regarding the financial success of Indian players such as Kohli, Dhoni, and Sachin Tendulkar.
“Upwards of 100 Crores Through Endorsements”
When Vaughan asked about the kind of money these Indian cricket icons make, Shastri didn’t hold back.
“𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏 𝒂 𝒍𝒐𝒕. 𝑨 𝒍𝒐𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒐𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔, 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒖𝒑𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒇 100 𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒔,” 𝑺𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒊 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒅.
He explained that the conversion roughly translates to 10 million pounds, adding,
“𝑰 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒉𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒓𝒖𝒑𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅. 𝑺𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒖𝒑𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕.”
Shastri highlighted that beyond their cricketing contracts, it’s brand endorsements that bring in the big bucks for players like Kohli and Dhoni. Their popularity among fans and advertisers alike ensures continuous commercial success.
Packed Schedules Limit Ad Appearances
Shastri also shared a fascinating insight into the advertising commitments of these players. He said that despite their massive earning potential, their hectic cricketing calendars restricted how many brand deals they could fulfil.
“𝑺𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒂𝒏 𝑴𝑺 𝒐𝒓 𝑲𝒐𝒉𝒍𝒊 𝒐𝒓 𝑺𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒐𝒎𝒑… 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒅𝒐 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 15-20 𝒂𝒅𝒔. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒕’𝒔 𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒂𝒚. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆,” 𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒅.
Shastri added that these stars often sign annual endorsement deals but can only spare a single day for shooting due to their commitments to playing.
England Dominate in Manchester Test
In other news, the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy saw England take control on Day 2 of the fourth Test in Manchester. Openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley forged a dominant 166-run stand to reduce India’s lead to just 133 runs.
Earlier in the match, India put up 358 runs with substantial contributions from Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudharsan, and Rishabh Pant. England captain Ben Stokes delivered a stunning performance, grabbing a five-wicket haul after eight years to put pressure back on the visitors.
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