Although many may not initially think of cricket as being one of the biggest sports in the world due to the lack of popularity that it may receive globally, it is important to remember that the game is incredibly well-received within a number of countries that have large populations.
Indeed, all you have to consider is India when thinking about the popularity of the game, with the sport arguably being the national sport. Indeed, when it is thought that there are 1.38 billion people in the country, then it is not hard to understand why there is so much appeal.
Even if you go further adrift, the game is highly popular in the Caribbean, as well as in places such as the United Kingdom, South Africa, and over the overside of the world in Australia and New Zealand, as well as Asian neighbors such as Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Given the amount of popularity that cricket has, it is perhaps not a surprise that it has also emerged as a popular betting market for many, as a lot of sports betting enthusiasts continue to look to bet on cricket matches whenever their country participates in the biggest competitions that take place across the globe.
Therefore, with the number of followers who are passionate about the game, it should not come as a surprise to learn that some of the biggest cricket stars have a social media following that is incredibly massive!
Indeed, a recent survey had found that nine of the top ten players across all social media platforms were Indian, with West Indies superstar Chris Gayle the only man to break up the top 10 from being completely dominated by the South Asian country.
Let’s take a look at the rankings by checking who the top 20 players are across the various social media platforms as of the beginning of February 2022 and perhaps try to explain why they appear in the position of the list that they do:
Top 10
First, let’s take a closer look at the Top 10:
- Virat Kohli – India – 278,048,457 followers across Facebook, Twitter & Instagram
- MS Dhoni – India – 72,693,960
- Rohit Sharma – India – 63,526,370
- Suresh Raina – India – 44,176,268
- Hardik Pandya – India – 39,540,565
- Shikhar Dhawan – India – 33,663,067
- KL Rahul – India – 28,106,397
- Jasprit Bumrah – India – 23,421,159
- Chris Gayle – West Indies – 22,116,112
- Ajinkya Rahane – India – 19,224,078
As mentioned previously, it is clear that India dominates the sport in regard to players who have the biggest social media following, and this could be down to a couple of reasons.
Indeed, the India cricket team has been ranked highly rather frequently in the ICC rankings in recent years, which may have helped to boost the players’ appeal with fans due to their efforts on the pitch, whilst the population factor mentioned previously could have also played a rather big role, too!
Chris Gayle is a known icon of the game when it comes to the short-form of the game, therefore it perhaps does not come as a surprise to see him rank highly in the list of followers, either.
Cricketers to rank between 11-20
Next, we take a look at those who are placed between 11th and 20th on the list for highest social media following and it becomes clear that there is still a rather similar theme that continues to be experienced here:
- Ravichandran Ashwin – India – 18,767,701
- David Warner – Australia – 18,593,563
- Ravindra Jadeja – India – 18,133,398
- Bhuvneshwar Kumar – India – 15,917,323
- Rishabh Pant – India – 14,444,948
- Umesh Yadav – India – 11,030,558
- Steve Smith – Australia – 10,562,839
- Glenn Maxwell – Australia – 10,376,972
- Mohammed Shami – India – 10,345,314
- Yuzvendra Chahal – India – 10,095,426
Again, Indian players appear to dominate the list even when it comes to the cricketers that are ranked between 11th and 20th with the most social media following.
Australia, though, does appear to start to show its importance on the game, though, with iconic players such as David Warner, Steve Smith, and Glenn Maxwell each making an appearance on the list.
Conclusion
Indeed, if you did not already know how popular cricket was within India, then perhaps this list of players with the most social media following will help. Of course, each individual is talented in their own right, but some might suggest the sport’s popularity within the Asian country has helped their status within this list.
