The Indian Premier League (IPL) is arguably one of the best franchise T20 leagues in the world. Along with the quality of competition that is there between teams, there are also world-class players that grace the IPL with their presence.
One of the main reasons why they get attracted to the IPL is their big paydays and big fat contracts. The world-class players get paid handsomely for showcasing their skills in the IPL. The more their demand, the higher is their pay. The franchises have also spent a lot in retaining their star players. Here we have a look at 7 such players who have earned the most money in IPL history.
1. MS Dhoni – INR 1,378,400,000
Arguably one of the finest Indian captains ever, MS Dhoni was an icon of Indian cricket. He is the only captain to have won’t the T20 World Cup, the 50-over World Cup as well as the Champions Trophy. He also has three IPL titles to his name with the Chennai Super Kings.
Dhoni was bought by CSK in the inaugural edition of the IPL as their marquee signing. His price tag then was USD 1.5 Million (INR 11 crores) till the 2010 edition. From IPL 2011 -2013, Dhoni”s price again dipped to INR 8.2 crores. But success as a skipper saw his price raised to INR 12.5 crores by the end of the 8th season of the Indian Premier League.
After playing two seasons for the Rising Pune Supergiant, Dhoni returned to CSK as one of the first players to be retained and earned a whopping INR 15 crores per season till date. Thus, in all the 13 seasons so far, MS Dhoni has earned over a mind-boggling INR 137 crores.
2. Rohit Sharma – INR 1,316,000,000
One of the most dangerous white-ball batsmen India has produced in the modern era, Rohit Sharma was one of the promising players picked up by the Deccan Charges for INR 3 crores till the 2010 IPL season. In 2011, he completed a big-money move to the Mumbai Indians and got a big fat paycheck of INR 11 crores till the 2013 season.
Having won the IPL 2013 with Mi as a captain, Rohit was retained in the 2014 season and his pay increased to INR 12.5 crores. Having won three IPL trophies with Mi till the end of IPL 2017, Rohit was again retained by MI in the 2018 IPL for a whopping INR 15 crores to date. He has earned over 131 crores in the 13 seasons of the IPL so far.
3. Virat Kohli – INR 1,262,000,000
Indian skipper Virat Kohli has been a loyal servant of the Royal Challengers Bangalore right from the inaugural edition of the IPL. The youngster from Delhi had then led India to a U19 World Cup win and was snapped up by the RCB franchise for INR 12 lakhs till the 2010 IPL season. In 2011, he was the only player retained by the franchise for INR 8.2 crores, and he continued to earn that amount till IPL 2013 season.
In 2014, the stakes of Kohli had raised exponentially due to his dominance in international cricket. For the next four seasons, he bagged a contract of INR 12.5 crores. From IPL 2018 season, Kohli has been earning an unbelievable INR 17 crores per season till date and his total tally has gone to more than INR 126 crores overall.
4. Suresh Raina – 997,400,000
Also known as Mr IPL, Suresh Raina has been one of the most consistent players in the IPL every single season. He was bagged as a young talent by the CSK franchise for INR 2.6 crores which he continued to earn till IPL 2010 season. After CSK won their first IPL title, Raina was retained in IPL 2011, and he got a new contract of INR 6 crores that he continued to earn till IPL 2013. His price raised to INR 9.5 crores for IPL 2014 and 2015 seasons respectively.
He later captained the Gujarat Lions for two seasons and earned INR 9.5 crores in IPL 2016 and INR 12.5 crores in IPL 2017 respectively. IN IPL 2018 and IPL 2019, he was back with CSK and earned INR 11 crores. This took his total tally over INR 98 crores.
5. Gautam Gambhir – INR 946,200,000
Gautam Gambhir is surely one of the unsung heroes of Indian cricket. He top-scored in both the 2007 T20 World Cup final and the 2011 World Cup final and helped India win both the tournaments. He was first snapped up by his local franchise Delhi Daredevils in the inaugural edition of the IPL for INR 2.9 crores, and he earned the same amount for the first three seasons.
In IPL 2011, he captained the Kolkata Knight Riders and was paid INR 11 crores for the next three seasons. After winning IPL 2012, Gambhir was retained by KKR and got a whopping INR 12.5 crores for his last four seasons at the club. He then made a move back to the Daredevils in IPL 2018 for INR 2.8 crores. He hung his boots after that season but his tally went over INR 96 crores.
6. AB de Villiers – 915,165,000
South African superstar AB de Villiers has been one of the most fearsome strikers of the ball the Indian Premier League has ever seen. He was first snapped up by the Delhi Daredevils for INR 3.9 crores and he continued to earn that much for the first three seasons. He then moved on to RCB, where he achieved a godly status in years to come.
RCB snapped him up for INR 5 crores which he continued to earn for the next two seasons. He got a pay raise to INR 6 crores in the following season and after that, his price rose to a whopping 9.5 crores in the IPL 2014, which he continued to earn for the next four seasons. He has been earning INR 11 crores from IPL 2018 and has earned almost INR 92 crores till date from IPL.
7. Yuvraj Singh – INR 846,050,000
One of India’s finest white-ball all-rounders, Yuvraj Singh was the hero of India’s 2007 T20 World Cup win and the 2011 World Cup win. He was picked by the Kings XI Punjab in the inaugural Indian Premier League 2008 auction for INR 4.25 crores and he earned that for three seasons. In IPL 2011, Pune Warriors India picked him up for INR 8.28 crores, and he kept on earning it for three seasons. In IPL 2014, Yuvraj hit jackpot as RCB picked him for an unbelievable INR 14 crores. But he was there only for one season as the next season the Delhi Daredevils picked him up, this time for an even bigger fee of INR 16 crores.
Again he shifted to Sunrisers Hyderabad the next season where he earned INR 9 crores. A stint again at Kings XI Punjab and the final IPL season for the Mumbai Indians saw Yuvraj’s tally go up to INR 84 crores.
