Top 5 Bat Sponsorships In The World that will surprise you
Cricket is the second most popular sport in the world and most popular in India. According to the International Cricket Council (ICC), there are 104 cricket-playing country members. There are approx 3 billion cricket fans in the World. And everyone knows that where there are people, there is money to be made. I have mentioned below the Top 5 Bat Sponsorships In The World that will surprise you.
Virat Kohli
Today, Virat Kohli is seen breaking all records in cricket history. Virat Kohli’s bat is under sponsorship with MRF, and this sponsorship is for 8 years which Virat Kohli got in 2017, this contract is worth Rs. 100 crores. If we calculate then it is approximately Rs 12.5 crore per year. This is the biggest bat sponsorship in the history of cricket till now, which is in the name of Indian cricketer Virat Kohli. Earlier this record was in the name of Sachin Tendulkar who was earning Rs 8 crore annually.
Rohit Sharma
We also know Indian captain Rohit Sharma as a Hitman. However, Rohit Sharma has played with bats from somewhere like Reebok, MRF, Ton, Adidas etc. But since 2015, Rohit Sharma has been seen playing with the bat of tire manufacturing company CEAT. Rohit Sharma earns around Rs 4 crore annually from the sponsorship of CEAT; this is the second biggest sponsorship in the history of cricket.
David Warner
Australian left-handed batsman David Warner has many fans in the world, but there is something different about the Indian fans. He has been seen doing Pushpa-style dance steps on the ground several times at the request of Indian fans.
David Warner’s bat sponsorship
He plays with a DSC brand bat if we talk about earning from bat sponsorship. David Warner earns Rs 3.3 crore every year from the sponsorship of DSC. This is the third largest bat sponsorship among the top 5 bat sponsorships in the world in the current cricket history.
Steve Smith
Steve Smith, former captain of Australia and a right-handed batsman, has had a great cricket career so far, but in the year 2018, Smith and David Warner were caught in the case of ball tampering. Look at that case even today from the eyes of cricket history. So that was the first time a player was banned from international cricket for 12 months in a ball-tampering case. But if we talk about Smith in today’s time, from his batting performance it never seems that he has ever been caught in the case of ball tampering.
Steve Smith’s bat sponsorship
Regarding his bat sponsorship, Steve Smith has today’s fourth largest bat sponsorship of Rs 2.45 crore with New Balance. Steve Smith uses the NBA’s DC-10 version of the format.
MS Dhoni
At 5th place in the top 5 bat sponsorships in the world is the world’s greatest wicketkeeper, MS Dhoni. Before talking about bat sponsorship, there are some records of Dhoni that you should know. His full name is Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Just like his name, his great feats are recorded in cricket history. MS Dhoni has 123 stumpings in international ODI cricket history. Which is the highest stumping to date. He is the first captain of India who has made India win the World Cup in T20, ODI, and Test formats. And whenever there is talk of a finisher, Dhoni’s name comes at number one.
Although MS Dhoni has retired from international cricket in the year 2020. But even today we are seen playing IPL (Indian Premier League). In the history of IPL, the most number of stumpings is also in the name of MS Dhoni.
MS Dhoni’s bat sponsorship
And if we talk about his bat sponsorship, Dhoni started his career with the Reebok logo on his bat. And he played with Reebok for a long time. Although Dhoni has had bat sponsorship with many companies in the 2019 World Cup, Dhoni did what no cricketer usually does – used multiple logos on the bat in multiple matches in a row. Did Dhoni do this because around the 2019 World Cup when he thought of retiring and ending his career, he thought of paying tribute to all the makers who have created their logos over time. Have served them using my bat. Dhoni’s biggest bat sponsorship was with Spartan Company and this contract was worth Rs 2.2 crore. And this is the fifth biggest bat sponsorship today.
In IPL 2024, MS Dhoni decided to thank his friend who supported him during his struggle. MS Dhoni used the ‘Prime Sports’ sticker name of his friend’s sports goods shop on his bat. That doesn’t mean he didn’t get sponsorship, he turned down all the sponsorships to promote his childhood friend Paramjit Singh.