Virat Kohli beats Bollywood stars to retain his No. 1 spot in global brand valuation

India cricketer Virat Kohli is accustomed to breaking records on the field. Now, the Indian captain has done that off the field as well. He has once again emerged on top of the list of celebrities with the highest brand value in the country. This is the third consecutive year that Virat Kohli has topped the list.

ALSO READ | NZ Vs Ind: Indian Commentator Verbally Abused By New Zealand Fan For Refusing Autograph

Virat Kohli beats Akshay Kumar, Ranveer-Deepika 

He beat his closest rival Bollywood star Akshay Kumar by a massive gap. According to a study done by a global advisory firm ‘Duff and Phelps' (it's titled Celebrity Brand Valuation Study 2019), Virat Kohli saw his brand value rise by a whopping 39% to $237.5 million. It is more than twice the amount attributed to second-placed Kumar whose brand value is $104.5 million.

Besides Virat Kohli, other cricketers in the list of top 20 include the great Sachin Tendulkar at the 15th spot. He has an overall valuation of $25.1 million. Former Indian captain MS Dhoni, who hasn’t played an international match since July 2019, finds himself at the ninth spot ($41.2 million). Vice-captain Rohit Sharma is placed at the 20th spot with an overall brand value of $23 million.  Bollywood power couple Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh are placed joint third with brand values of $93.5 million each. Shah Rukh Khan takes the 4th spot with a brand value of $66.1 million.

ALSO READ | NZ vs Ind: Virat Kohli equals Sachin Tendulkar's record against New Zealand

Virat Kohli once again had a fabulous time with the bat in 2019. The 31-year-old ended 2019 as the leading run-scorer (2455 runs) across all the three formats of the game for the fourth consecutive calendar year.

ALSO READ | Virat Kohli's moment of magic & brilliance to run-out Henry Nicholls is unmissable

Virat Kohli is currently leading the Indian team on their tour to New Zealand where he has already registered several records as a captain by becoming the first player to lead his side to a 5-0 whitewash in T20I cricket. 

ALSO READ | NZ vs IND: Virat Kohli surpasses Sourav Ganguly with most runs as captain in ODI

IMAGE COURTESY: VIRAT KOHLI INSTAGRAM