Indian Cricket Players In Top 100 Athletes List This Year:- Indian Cricket players Virat Kohli, Former Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and stylish left-handed batsmen, Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina have found places in the ESPN World Fame this year.
According to a media release, Kohli (28) is placed in the 13th spot and Dhoni in the 15th, while Yuvraj and Raina have been ranked 90th and 95th respectively. The list is ESPN’s ranking of the 100 most famous active athletes in the world.
Top Portuguese footballer Christiano Ronaldo is heading the list, while NBA great Lebron James, another soccer star Lionel Messi and tennis ace Roger Federer are the top four athletes, in that order. Phil Mickelson, Neymar Usain Bolt, Kevin Durant, Rafael Nadal and Tiger Woods are the others in the top ten.
The ESPN director of sports analytics Ben Alamar devised the ranking which is based on a formula. The media release explained that the formula combines endorsements, social media reach and other data to create a comparative ranking system.
In February, Kohli joined the likes of Bolt, Rickie Fowler and Thierry Henry as a Puma endorser. His eight-year contract with the shoe company is worth more than 100 crore rupees. This could be the largest for an Indian athlete.
ESPN The Magazine, as part of the overall package, will dedicate an entire issue to World Fame 100, including features on some athletes, notably Yuvraj. The release said it is scheduled to hit news stands in the US on June 2.
Yuvraj after beating a rare form of lung cancer, has given fans someone to look up to, when things get tough. In 2015, the YouWeCan foundation was launched by Yuvi, to fight cancer.
Among others to be featured likewise are 18-time Grand Slam men’s singles champion Federer, Real Madrid superstar, Ronaldo, biggest draw in athletics, Bolt, NBA star, Kevin Durant, swimming ace, Ryan Lochte, and Formula One champion, Lewis Hamilton.
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