The Indian Premier League (IPL) has helped many players earn a livelihood. Players from all over the world participate in this competition, and in the last 13 years, IPL has overtaken all the top cricketing tourneys to become the most-followed domestic cricket league.
The Mumbai Indians have been the most successful team in IPL history, with five trophies to their name. The Chennai Super Kings and the Kolkata Knight Riders are the only other teams who have won the trophy multiple times. Talking about MI, one of the primary reasons behind their success has been their auction strategy.
Every year, the Mumbai Indians have a perfect plan for the auction and they manage to get the players they want. The bowlers play an important role in any team’s success, especially in T20 cricket. Thus, the franchises tend to go the extra mile to sign the bowlers they wish to have in their team.
Here are the five bowlers who have earned the most money from the IPL in the last 13 years.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar – 43.22 Crores
Two-time IPL Purple Cap winner Bhuvneshwar Kumar deservedly holds the fifth position on this list. The right-arm fast bowler from Uttar Pradesh began his IPL journey with the Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2009.
He had a salary of 6 lakhs per season at that time. He worked hard and secured a contract worth 20 lakhs from the Pune Warriors. His marvelous performances for the Pune-based franchise gave him a 4.2 Crore contract from the Sunrisers Hyderabad. Currently, his salary is 8.5 Crores.
Dale Steyn – 47.15 Crores
South African speedster Dale Steyn is no longer the player that he once was. However, he stands at the fourth position on this elite list. The right-arm quick bowler got a deal worth 1.3 Crores from the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2008.
In 2011, Steyn became a part of the Deccan Chargers, who signed him for 5.5 Crores. His highest pay was 9.5 Crores which the SRH paid him in 2014 and 2015. Currently, RCB pays him 2 Crores for his services.
Lasith Malinga – 48.22 Crores
The highest wicket-taker in IPL history, Lasith Malinga is surprisingly not the highest-paid bowler in the tournament. One of the reasons behind it is that he has got injured regularly. Still, the Mumbai Indians have retained their faith in him.
The Sri Lankan legend missed IPL 2020 because of personal reasons. MI signed him for 1.4 Crores in 2008, and he received his biggest paycheck worth 9.5 Crores in 2014. MI had signed Malinga for 2 Crores last year.
Harbhajan Singh – 56.14 Crores
Chennai Super Kings’ star spin bowler Harbhajan Singh holds the record for being the highest-paid Indian bowler in IPL history. Like Lasith Malinga, even Bhajji skipped IPL 2020 because of personal reasons. It is noteworthy that Singh and Malinga played together for MI from 2008 to 2017.
The right-arm off-spinner started his IPL career with a 3.4 Crores contract from the Mumbai Indians. While Harbhajan’s biggest pay check has been worth 5.98 Crores only, the reason why he stands above Bhuvneshwar, Steyn, and Malinga is that he has consistently made that amount in IPL. Currently, his pay is 2 Crores.
Sunil Narine – 82.74 Crores
The undisputed number one in this list is the Kolkata Knight Riders’ mystery bowler Sunil Narine. The Trinidad and Tobago player got a deal worth 3.51 Crores in the 2012 season, and that salary has rose to 12.5 Crores now.
It goes without saying that Narine has been instrumental in KKR’s success. The bowler, who has now evolved into a handy batsman as well, has been earning 12.5 Crores per year since 2018. His bowling performance played a crucial role in KKR’s 2012 and 2014 championship wins. It will be interesting to see if Narine could become the first bowler in IPL history to earn over 100 Crores from the league.
