MUMBAI: Indian captain MS Dhoni has topped Forbes list of highest earning cricketers with an estimated $26.5 million income in 2011, which is way ahead of batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar?s earnings of $18.6 million.

Dhoni, under whose captainship India won the 2011 Cricket World Cup, earned a whopping $23 million from nearly 25 brands that he endorses. Only a small portion of his earning, about $3.5 million, came from IPL and central contracts.
 
Tendulkar, who earned a total $16.5 million from endorsements, saw his earning?s shrink due to refusal to endorse a liquor brand and injuries which kept him out of a number of IPL matches and missing out completely on the Champions League games.

In a list dominated by Indians, the next three spots in the list are held by Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli and Virendra Sehwag who earned $7.3 million, $7.1 million and $6.9 million respectively.

The next four spots in the list are held by Australian cricketers with Shane Watson leading the pack at the sixth spot earning $5.9 million last year.
 
Watson is followed by Australian captain Michael Clarke ($4.9 million), Brett Lee ($4.8 million) and Ricky Ponting ($4.1 million), boosted by central contracts and endorsement deals besides healthy income from IPL and Big Bash League.

At the 10th spot is out of favour Yusuf Pathan with earnings of $3.7 million with cricket pay itself contributing $3.3 million.

MUMBAI: Two Indian cricketers have made it to the Forbes list of World?s 100 Highest-Paid Athletes list, with Mahendra Singh Dhoni earning more than Sachin Tendulkar.

Dhoni ranks 31 in the richie rich list with total earnings of $26.5 million, way ahead of the master blaster who occupied the 78th position with earnings of $18.6 million. A large chunk of their earnings came from endorsements with Dhoni earning as much as $23 million from it compared to Tendulkar?s $16.5 million.

Globally, it?s the boxers who have raked in the moolah with American pro Floyd Mayweather topping the list with $85 million earnings, followed by Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao at $62 million.

Golf icon Tiger Woods, who has been topping the Forbes list since 2001, fell to third spot with $59.4 million, his earnings off by $16 million from the previous year and by half since his peak in 2009.

Basketball star LeBron James is fourth at $53 million, the highest of 13 basketball players on the list. Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer is fifth at $52.7 million followed by another basketball player Kobe Bryant at $52.3 million and US golfer Phil Mickelson at $47.8 million. English football star David Beckham made $46 million.

The top 100 athletes made $2.6 billion.