(Image source from: The Indian Express)
Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli has been titled as the world's highest-paid athletes, according to Forbes, an American business magazine.
The Forbes compilation was topped by American boxing champion Floyd Mayweather.
Kohli, the sportsperson from India is the only one to be featured in the list, and is stratified 83rd with earning of United States Dollar $24 million. Astonishingly, the compendium of World's Highest-Paid Athletes 2018 is an all-male affair with no women being featured in the list.
Forbes, The Highest-Paid Athletes
Kohli, 29, is not just cricket-crazy India's biggest name but is also one of the most popular athletes in the world, "boasting more Twitter followers (25 million-plus) than all but three active sports stars", Forbes said.
The 'World's Highest-Paid Athletes 2018' list is topped by 41-year-old Mayweather, with US$ 285 million earnings. This year the Indian national cricket board 'The Board of Control for Cricket in India' named Kohli as one of just five players to receive the newly-created A+ contracts, which guarantee an annual retainer of more than US$ 1 million, it said.
"Yet like the Indian cricket mega-stars who have come before him, Kohli's big payday comes off the pitch" where he's partnered with top brands such as Puma, Pepsi, Audi and Oakley, Forbes said.
Forbes said tennis' female sportspersons Li Na, Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams were list regulars but Li retired in 2014 and Sharapova is still dealing with the aftermath of a 15-month suspension for using a banned substance.
American basketball player LeBron James (6), Tennis star Roger Federer (7), Golfer Tiger Woods (16) and Rory McIlroy (26), and Tennis player Rafael Nadal (20) include in the list of Forbes.
Forbes said it was harder than ever to qualify for the 100 highest-paid athletes, with the cutoff up US$ 1.5 million to US$ 22.9 million. The top 100 earned US$ 3.8 billion, a 23 per cent jump over last year.
The top 100 has an international flavour with athletes from 22 countries, but Americans dominate the action with 66 making the cut thanks to sky-high salaries in baseball, basketball and football. Those three sports had a combined 72 entries, Forbes added.
By Sowmya Sangam
