Cricket has evolved from a strictly amateur game into a multibillion-dollar industry that is starting to grow exponentially as the developing world embraces the sport. And Indian batting sensation Virat Kohli has taken it to a whole new level.
The dashing batsman has left behind the likes of football superstar Lionel Messi, world No. 1 tennis player Novak Djokovic to become the third-most marketable sportsperson in the world.
According to a survey carried out by UK-based magazine ‘SportsPro’, Kohli is ranked behind NBA’s ‘Most Valuable Player’ Stephen Curry and Juventus’ French international Paul Pogba.He is followed by golf star Jordan Spieth.
11 times grand slam champion Novak Djokovic is ranked 23rd in the list, five times ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi is ranked 27th while sprint star Usain Bolt is ranked 31st in the list.
According to SportsPro, which does extensive research on the business of sports, the criteria of ranking athletes from across the world is marketing potential over a three-year period, from this summer.
The components they have been assessed are value for money, age, home market, charisma, willingness to be marketed and crossover appeal.
Well after seeing the components that were needed to assess, one can say that seeing Virat Kohli so high in the list is not surprising.When a brand looks for a sporting celebrity to associate with, the first criterion is undoubtedly sporting success. One can’t be a celebrity without fame, and one can’t be famous without consistently performing at the highest level of his sport. Kohli has been ruling the cricket arena with his batting in the last couple of years.
Apart from his batting, Kohli’s personality is another factor that makes him so marketable. His fearless approach on the field, his body language, his modern attitude is just perfect to appeal to this generation. Kohli represents the next stage in India’s transformation. India’s youth now are a lot more confident and fearless than previous generations and Kohli has that charisma in his personality which represents the modern Indian youth.
One more factor which has contributed to this phenomenal achievement is the timing of Kohli’s rise in the cricket arena. After the retirement of stalwarts like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Saurav Ganguly and VVS Laxman India needed a batsman to become the next flag-bearer of the team and one can say that Kohli has exceeded every expectation.
SportsPro started to publish the list annually from 2010. The elite list has been topped by some of the greatest sports personality in the last 5 years. While NBA star LeBron James topped the list in 2010, Usain Bolt was the most marketable athlete in 2011, the next two years were headed by Brazilian football star Neymar and Lewis Hamilton topped the list in 2014.