The Best of 2017: 5 Cricketers who finish the year with highest social media following

The year of 2017 was a great one when it came to the cricketing action. The year saw some closely contested thrilling action on the cricket field. Also, the stage was lit up with popular tournaments like the ICC Champions Trophy, the IPL, PSL, and many more. Amidst this backdrop, the social media following of the cricketers took a huge leap.

With a plethora of cricket action being played, the popularity of the cricketers was bound to soar high and cross all limits. Also, the cricketers indulged in more fan interaction then ever before with many ‘Q and A’ sessions. Moreover, the cheeky digs at fellow players got cheekier, and the merry wishes got merrier on special occasions.

So who were the cricketers who benefited the most out of this meteoric rise? There were certain players who saw great growth in their popularity on the social media. Here we pick 5 such cricketers who are set to end the year of 2017 with highest social media following. Before you read on, here are two important things to take into consideration.

Firstly, all stats are updated as on December 21, 2017 (the numbers will definitely increase!). Secondly, Twitter has been taken as a parameter to rank the five players in ascending order. Albeit Facebook and Instagram followers are also included in the numbers, the legitimacy and uniqueness of Twitter followers make the list more reliable.

Here is a look at the top 5 most popular cricketers on the social media:

5. Rohit Sharma (9.99 Million followers on Twitter)

Ace Indian cricketer Rohit Sharma has been smashing record on the field. He recently became the only cricketer to hit 3 double tons in ODI cricket. Well, his popularity was bound to soar. Rohit had a phenomenal year on the field in the Indian outfit. He notched up 6 ODI tons this year – the joint most along with Virat Kohli.

Also, the year of 2017 saw Rohit being named as the captain of the Indian team in the absence of Virat Kohli. Moreover, it was under his leadership that Mumbai Indians lifted the IPL trophy this year. Combine this with his return to the Indian Test team, and perfect Rohit Sharma story is at the disposal.

Amidst this scenario, it comes as no surprise that Rohit has built a huge social media following. He is highly active on the social media and keeps posting fun updates – be it trolling Shardul Thakur for his ‘jersey number’, or be it giving post-wedding advice to Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli. Rohit has 9.99 million followers on Twitter, 10 million followers on Facebook, and 4.3 million Instagram followers.

4. Suresh Raina (12.2 Million followers on Twitter)

Veteran Indian batsman Suresh Raina has had a tough year of 2017 on the cricket field. He had a great start to the year after being named in the Indian team for the England series. However, the fortunes seemed to dwindle as the year progressed. Despite all the hardships, Raina continues to work hard and has set some serious goals.

He is keen on making a comeback to the national side in the coming days. Albeit his time on the ground has not been very fruitful, his popularity has seen no dip on the social media. With a cumulative social media following of 19.2 million, Suresh Raina features at the number 2 spot in the list.

Raina has a whopping 12.2 million followers on Twitter. His popularity on Facebook needs to pep up though. He has 2.9 million Facebook followers. When it comes to Instagram, Raina has 4.1 million followers. He is very active on the social media and keeps posting updates about his game and his family life.

3. Virender Sehwag (14.7 Million followers on Twitter)

Former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag has been smashing people on the social media this year. Post his retirement, Sehwag has managed to be the fans’ favorite in another domain – the social media. He is one of the most popular cricketers and has a great social media following. The reasons for his popularity need no introduction.

Sehwag is known for his hilarious trolls and digs at his fellow teammates and other cricketers. His ‘darzi’ banter with New Zealand cricketer Ross Taylor saw an escalation of unmatched levels on the social media. Also, he has made a habit of wishing cricketers in his own way. His birthday wishes are fun filled and loaded with sarcasm and puns.

Talking about the numbers, Virender Sehwag has a social media following of 14.7 million on Twitter. He is followed by 14.3 million people on the social media site Facebook. And, when it comes to Instagram, Sehwag has 2.2 million followers.

2. Virat Kohli (21.7 Million followers on Twitter)

Most of the fans would have expected Virat Kohli to be heading this list. Interestingly, Virat has fallen short by a whisker in topping the charts this year. Kohli is rated second among the most followed cricketer on Twitter with 21.7 Million followers. However, when the cumulative number of followers are to be seen, Kohli tops the charts.

Virat has a cumulative number of 76.2 Million followers. In addition to his almost 22M followers on Twitter, he has 36.5M people following him on Facebook, and 18M followers on Instagram. Recently, Kohli broke the Indian record for the most popular tweet. His wedding tweet fetched the record number of retweets and favorites on Twitter.

Kohli is a highly active cricketer on the social media. After every Indian series win, Kohli shares some or the other update for his fans and the team. Also, his tweets for his love Anushka Sharma have been favorited all the year along. He is expected to take the top spot in this list by the time the list gets refreshed next year.

1. Sachin Tendulkar (22.5 Million followers on Twitter)

And at the numero uno spot is the iconic former Indian cricketer, Sachin Tendulkar. Sachin ends the year of 2017 as the cricketer with highest social media following. With a cumulative number of 59.8 Million followers across the three popular social media platforms, Sachin comes at number 2 spot when it comes to the total number of followers.

However, considering Twitter as the platform parameter used for this list, the legendary former cricketer is quite some distance ahead of Virat Kohli. Sachin has 22.5 M followers on Twitter, 28.6 M followers on Facebook, and 8.7 M people follow him on Instagram.

Sachin’s popularity on the social media can be credited to his active presence. He usually sends out his updates on social causes. He recently initiated a campaign urging the drivers in India to wear helmets. He posted out several videos for the same and was well appreciated by his fans for the noble cause he was working for.