The Indian ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been named again in the top 100 highest paid athletes in the world, a list released by Forbes every year.
Dhoni was ranked 22nd in the previous year’s list. This year, he has dropped a place and is on the 23rd rank on the list. Dhoni’s endorsements are worth 27 million USD and along with his salary of USD 4 million, Dhoni’s total earnings are estimated to be around USD 31 million.
The Forbes list of Richest Athletes was topped once again by Floyd Mayweather the boxer from America. The list also included the likes of the tennis ace Roger Federer, golfer Tiger Woods, footballer Christiano Ronaldo among others.
Forbes talking about Dhoni who recently retired from Test cricket, said that his effort in taking India to the semi-final in the recent World Cup and his success with the Chennai Super Kings in the 8th season of IPL has seen him retain his brand image. He is also on the verge of getting his own Biopic ‘MS Dhoni: The Untold Story’ which may further increase his value.
The list includes money earned by the athletes in salary, prize money and also bonuses paid to them. The figures from June 2014 to June 2015 are taken into consideration.
Mayweather who is on top is estimated to earn USD 300 million which is more than double the previous highest by Tiger Woods in 2008. His fight against Pacquiao in itself earned him USC 13 million.
Only two women made the list published by Forbes. At 26th place, Maria Sharapova the tennis star is the top ranked Woman in the list with USD 29.7 million. Serena Williams another tennis star is the only other woman on the list. She was ranked 47 with USD 24.6 million.
The total income of the 100 athletes on the list has risen by 17% from the previous year and stands at USD 3.2 billion. The list also included Novak Djokovic on the 13th rank with earnings of USD 48.2 million, German Formula One driver Sebastian Vettel (21), tennis star Rafael Nadal (22), soccer player Wayne Rooney (34) and Jamaican runner Usain Bolt (73).