(UDHAYAM, COLOMBO) – Virat Kohli is undoubtedly one of the most marketable Indian sportspersons at the moment and he is currently seen as the prime contender to overtake the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni as far as brand endorsements are concerned. However, the Indian cricket team skipper made it clear that cricket is his only priority and he is not in any race with regards to the commercial deals are concerned.
“My brand value should be somewhere in the region of USD 120 million. But these are just number for me. It is not something that I strive for. It is just a by-product of something that I do in my professional career and the focus always remains that,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Next website.
“I can’t really pinpoint it to anything (on why he is the most marketable athlete even ahead of the likes of Tendulkar and Dhoni). Also, you need to understand where the commercial market is going. In general, the money has increased in the sport, the money has increased with brands, so there is always going to be a progress,” he stated.
“The guy coming in after a certain group of cricketers might make more money with brands. So you cannot really compare the value that someone has made in their prime with others. So I won’t compare but I can say that it has be a natural thing that people should find connect with you,” he added.
Kohli, who is a role model for the Indian youths, has also made a conscious decision to promote those brands which he consumes himself. “Few brands that I have endorsed in the past, now I feel that I don’t connect well with that anymore. If I don’t consume those things then I won’t want to promote it for others to consume just because I am getting money out of it. If I am endorsing a brand I would want to do it in the right way,” he said.
“They want to see you as part of the product that they consume or brands want to use you as connect between them and the people. I haven’t made a conscious effort on that and I have just been myself and maybe people have started to connect with me in a certain way.”
