The Indian Premier League has become the most famous T20 cricket league globally because of the high-profile names involved in the competition. The reason why many star cricketers prefer IPL over the tournaments is the amount of money. No other league pays such high salaries as the IPL.
Every year, the BCCI conducts an IPL Auction, where the top T20 stars on the planet enroll themselves. Even a big name does not get a contract sometimes. On the other side, unknown players become Crorepatis. Because of this nature of the IPL Auction, some players below 30 have earned massive amounts of money from IPL.
This listicle features the top five players who are less than 30 years old and have earned the most money.
(Source – Moneyball)
5. Jaydev Unadkat – 33.41 Crores
Jaydev Unadkat has been playing in the IPL for over a decade now. The left-arm medium-pacer recently celebrated the decennial anniversary of his Test debut. Over the years, many IPL franchises have signed Unadkat in the auction.
The Saurashtra-based bowler received his most significant IPL contract from the Rajasthan Royals. The Jaipur-based franchise signed him for a whopping 11.5 Crores in 2018. In IPL 2020, the Royals paid him 3 Crores for his services.
4. Rishabh Pant – 34.80 Crores
India’s rising star Rishabh Pant made his IPL debut in the year 2016 only. However, his big-hitting skills have taken his IPL contract’s worth to 15 Crores. The Delhi Capitals had signed him for 1.9 Crores in IPL Auction 2016.
Pant has stayed with Delhi since then. The southpaw has played many game-changing knocks for his franchise. Because of his excellent performances, Pant even broke into the Indian cricket team and played in the 2019 Cricket World Cup.
3. KL Rahul – 37.10 Crores
KL Rahul started his journey with the Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2013. Back then, Rahul had a contract of only ten lakhs only. RCB released him as the wicket-keeper batsman moved to the Sunrisers Hyderabad next year.
Rahul returned to RCB via the player transfer window. At that time, his salary was one crore per season. Surprisingly, Bangalore retained Sarfaraz Khan ahead of him in 2018. Currently, Lokesh’s IPL salary is 11 crores per year.
2. Sanju Samson – 40.58 Crores
Kerala’s wicket-keeper batsman Sanju Samson is another player who started from the bottom but is at the peak now. Samson had a contract of only eight lakhs in 2012. The Kolkata Knight Riders had signed the upcoming wicket-keeper batsman then.
However, KKR did not retain him for the next season. Samson joined the Rajasthan Royals and became a big star. In the last three seasons, the Royals have paid eight crores per year, taking his overall salary to 40.58 Crores.
1. Ben Stokes – 52 Crores
Ben Stokes made his IPL debut in 2017 and still tops the list. In just four IPL seasons, the ambidextrous all-rounder from England has earned over 50 crores from the IPL.
The Rising Pune Supergiant signed him for a price of 14.5 Crores in the IPL 2017 Auction. After Pune bid farewell to the league, the Rajasthan Royals secured Stokes’ services for 12.5 Crores. Currently, Ben is only 29 years old and can play the IPL for at least six-seven years.
