Social media has changed the landscape of cricket in more ways than one. Not only has it brought the fans closer to their favorite stars but it has also allowed the players to express their feelings and keep their fans updated on what they are up to.
Twitter has become the major platform for cricketers to express themselves and so it is only fair that we look at the cricketers with the most followers on Twitter. Although the likes of AB de Villiers, Chris Gayle and Kevin Pietersen make some engaging conversation on it, they don't feature in the top five: In fact, only six cricketers have more than 5 million and Dhoni, who has over 6.5 million followers just misses out on the top five.
NOTE: Updated as of 23 August 2017.
So here are the 5 most followed cricketers on Twitter:
5) Rohit Sharma
7,461,741 followers
Consistency on the pitch has led to Rohit Sharma’s immense popularity, off it. A testament to that is the fact that he overtook India’s World Cup, World T20 and Champions Trophy winning captain, MS Dhoni and moved into the fifth spot on the list of most followed cricketers on Twitter.
Unlike Dhoni, who is a reluctant user of social media, Rohit certainly isn’t averse to sharing thoughts on a regular basis, whether that is after an India win or just an update on what he is doing off the pitch, along with his many commercial commitments.
Although he only joined Twitter in March 2010, Rohit is already in fifth spot and that is largely thanks to his regular updates on everything from his fitness, the environment to tweets about his teammates and the fact that he isn’t averse to showing his lighter side on social media.
4) Suresh Raina
9,735,216 followers
Suresh Raina may not have played an ODI since October 2015 but he is fourth on this list as he is a quintessential modern cricketer, who keeps his fans updated on his whereabouts. Closing in on becoming one of only four cricketers with over 10 million followers, the southpaw is certainly extremely popular on Twitter.
Despite being the second-last cricketer on this list to join Twitter, he still has more tweets than the top two on this list and only Virender Sehwag has more Tweets than Raina of the cricketers on this list.
While the time Raina has spent on the field might be minimal, he will be hoping to play more and keep his loyal fans happy. If he returns back to the Indian limited-overs set-up for the upcoming series against Australia and New Zealand, he will certainly move higher on this list.
3) Virender Sehwag
11,729,485 followers
Whether it was with the bat when he was playing for India or with his hilarious commentary in his recent venture as a commentator or on Twitter, Virender Sehwag is a lot of fun. Players who take the game on the chin and don’t make it too serious are usually the ones who make for great Twitter users.
In Sehwag’s case, that is exactly what makes him so much fun on Twitter. Whether it is engaging in friendly banter or responding to queries from his fans, the former Indian opener showcases his lighter side, which is one of the reasons why he has nearly 6 million followers on Twitter.
What makes Sehwag’s Twitter account even more special is the fact that he not only tweets about cricket but also re-tweets vital messages from fans and passes on information, which would otherwise be lost on Twitter.
Perhaps that is why he is one of only three cricketers to have over 10 million followers on Twitter.
2) Virat Kohli
17,344,980 followers
Virat Kohli may not always keep track of the records that he continues to accumulate on the pitch but it seems as though he keeps track of his fans on Twitter. How else then do you explain his Tweet upon crossing 11 million followers on the site.
Despite the fact that he is incredibly busy, scoring bucketloads of runs on the pitch, he still finds time to tweet to his fans. And the best part is that it isn’t always about his teammates but about various Indians who have done well in sports. A testament to that is his recent tweet congratulating Saina Nehwal.
If he keeps improving at the current rate, there is no reason why he shouldn’t take the No.1 spot soon.
1) Sachin Tendulkar
18,210,713 followers
Sachin Tendulkar may have retired from cricket but he is still No.1 on this list. Despite being the last of the players on this list to join Twitter, the Indian batting legend has more fans than everyone else. And his popularity shows no signs of going down.
Much like Virat Kohli, Tendulkar’s tweets are not just wishes to the Indian cricket team but also to various Indian athletes and even birthday wishes to former teammates. So the cricketer’s fans can also keep updated on his whereabouts despite him not playing cricket anymore.
Sachin’s popularity is evident as the number of followers is the most of any cricketer and is almost as much that of AB de Villiers, Chris Gayle and Kevin Pietersen combined. But with Virat Kohli’s popularity rising with each day, it is a question of how long, Sachin can keep the No.1 spot.
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