Sport is big business - and so is that of the WAGs behind the supporting lines. I investigated the lives of Indian Premier League star's wives - from their expensive car collection, thousand-pound dresses and having their husbands at their every beck and call.
The wives of Indian Premier League stars are giving footballers' WAGS a run for their money
By Jess Lester
TRAVELLING in luxury cars, relaxing poolside and flying by private jets to glamorous locations across the globe – it’s all in a day in the life of a WAG.
But it’s not just footballer WAGS who live the glam life – the other-halves of Indian Premier League cricketers are giving the footballers’ wives a run for their money.
The all-Indian cricket Premier League sees the top eight teams compete for millions in prize money every year.
And with millions more in the form of sponsorship, top players like Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his closest rival Virat Kohli have plenty of cash to splash at home.
And what better way to spend it than making sure their wives are kitted out in sparkling diamonds and keeping their children up to date with the latest fashion trends?
Here the Sun Online meets the five richest Indian Premier League WAGs.
The fashionista who makes her husband tie her shoes
Chennai Kings captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has no shortage of cash with estimated annual earnings of £25million.
And his wife Sakshi Singh-Rawat has a designer wardrobe worth thousands.
She and the couple’s three-year-old daughter Ziva are always dressed to impress, with the mother-of-one often spotted in bespoke Indian dresses.
In one photo, she posed in a Falguni Shane Peacock lehenga dress that retails for more than £4,000, and in another she attended a wedding in a one-of-a-kind Manish Malhotra gown worth £6,000.
And Sakshi admits her husband pays for her designer clothes.
In a recent post, the 30-year-old showed her husband fastening her shoes, writing: “You paid for those shoes, so you can tie them too!”
Meanwhile, little Ziva has been spotted in special-edition kids Ugg boots that retail for £56.99 and relaxing in the leather armchair of a private jet plane.
Sakshi and Dhoni, 37, who has a net worth of £100m, have a huge family home in Ranchi, India, which has its own swimming pool, gymnasium and a seven-acre garden.
Known as ‘Vara’, the multi-million-pound gated property has armed staff patrolling the grounds, and the family have seven dogs which freely roam to keep intruders at bay.
While his wife enjoys picking the finest clothes, Dhoni doesn’t hold back on his own luxury indulgences.
The garden of his house boasts a bespoke glass building to showcase his luxury motorbike collection, which is worth millions.
Dhoni, who was the 23rd highest paid athlete in the world in 2015, is said to have a soft spot for his Ferrari 599 GTO, with a price tag of £275,000 and Confederate Hellcat X132, costing £39,000.
And while bikes may be his preference, the cricket legend also has a fleet of cars, including a Hummer H2, a Mercedes-Benz GLE and a Land Rover Freelander.
The model that made her own £25million
Bollywood actress and Vogue cover girl Anushka Sharma is married to Virat Kohli of the Royal Challengers Bangalore, who is worth a massive £47million.
The 30-year-old actress, who has 24 million followers on social media, graced the cover of Vogue India’s March edition and has modelled all over the world for covers of Grazia, Harper’s Bazaar and Forbes.
She has her own fortune, with an annual income of around £3million, and is thought to have made a total of £25million from her appearances in film roles over the years.
A keen fashionista, she boasts a wardrobe that includes high end pieces from designer brands like Moschino as well as outfits from her own India-based label, NUSH.
Home for the high-flying couple is a 7,000sqft apartment in Mumbai overlooking the Arabian Sea.
The high-rise apartment block has an indoor tennis court, a sky terrace for celebrity parties and a private balcony, where the pair celebrated Diwali in November.
They also own homes in Bangalore, Delhi and the UK and when they fancy going further afield, the couple travel in style.
Virat is known to charter planes that can cost up to £8,000 for frequent holidays to top destinations across the world, including America, Sri Lanka and Budapest.
The cricketer’s love for luxury has seen him rack up over £600,000 in cars, with a fleet of Audi’s that English footballers would envy.
His collection, including a Audi RS, a Q7 and a R8 V8V10 Plus, is kept in garages at his Indian homes as well as in the UK.
The 30-year-old, who is thought to have turned over £100million in deals with sports brands, also owns a Land Range Rover Vogue, a BMW 7 and a Lamborghini, worth more than £200,000 on its own.
The British Bollywood actress who travels the world
After fighting cancer and still winning in the Indian Premier League in 2014, it’s no surprise that Yuvraj Singh has a special place in the hearts of cricket fans.
With an annual salary of £1.5million, Singh is thought to have made £27million as a sportsman as well as raking it in for his bestselling book The Test of My Life
But British wife Hazel Keech brings in her own cash after finding fame as a Bollywood actress while on holiday in India.
The couple, who wed in 2016, splashed out on a £7million property in Mumbai which takes takes up the entire 29th floor of a high-rise in the affluent financial district.
The couple have never done things by halves – splashing hundreds of thousands on their lavish wedding, which took place in three parts across India and in the UK.
Bride Hazel, 32, wore an array of designer dresses for the affair, amounting to thousands of pounds in the cost of diamonds alone, before they jetted off on a yachting honeymoon in a secret location.
And it isn’t just for a wedding that the pair likes to get dressed up either, with Yuvraj’s wife posing on Instagram in an Anarkali dress worth £1,500, and another by JJ Valaya priced from £4,000.
While Singh practices on the cricket field, Hazel spends her time travelling between homes in India and England, as well as sunbathing in Antigua and the Maldives.
Together the pair have had luxury holidays in Italy, the Seychelles, Monte Carlo and Jamaica.
While his wife stocks her designer wardrobe, Yuvraj prefers to spend cash on cars – having amounted a collection worth £560,000 – including a Lamborghini Murcielago, Bentley Continental and a Porsche 911.
The philanthropist who loves her designer gowns
Suresh Raina is thought to be the fifth wealthiest cricket player in Indian history, so it’s no surprise the 32-year-old has a £2million property decked out in marble and gold trims – and of course it has a pool.
Dotted around the property are pictures of the cricketer’s wife, Priyanka Chaudhary, and their three-year-old daughter Gracia Raina.
While social entrepreneur Priyanka makes her own money by travelling the world as a motivational speaker, she also gets to jet around the globe on lavish holidays with her husband.
Philanthropist Priyanka set up her own charity, the Gracia Raina Foundation, named after the couple’s daughter, and delivers talks on empowering women.
Together, the pair have jetted in private planes and travelled in luxury cars to South America, England, Amsterdam, Spain and the Himalayas – often for Priyanka’s own work.
Priyanka has her fair share of the finer things in life, including dresses from Indian designer Pavalli Mohan, who creates bespoke gowns and one off pieces for celebrity customers with a £1,500 price tag.
Suresh’s net worth of £18million means that he can also afford to have a fleet of nice cars, a Mini Cooper, BMW-Sedan, Mercedes GLC and a Porsche Boxster, amounting to £135,000.
The new mum with a home cinema and Jacuzzi
Known as the ‘Hitman’ of cricket Rohit Sharma earned his £16million worth from sponsorship by brands like Swiss Hublot and Oppo mobiles.
The captain of the Mumbai Indians lives a lavish lifestyle alongside his celebrity friends including football coach Jose Mourinho and tennis legend Stan Smith – and is thought to have made £2.5million last year.
The 31-year-old is married to his manager Ritika Sajdeh, who is often spotted showing her glamorous outfits on Instagram, in between posts about the couple’s newborn daughter.
In one snap, Ritika thanks Indian designer Payal Singhal for a dress worth £500, and in another, a traditional Indian gown by Anushree Reddy, who charges thousands for bespoke pieces.
The couple own a 6,000 square foot apartment in Mumbai worth a staggering £4million which boasts a mini cinema as well as two Jacuzzi spa tubs in the bathroom.
Their home has marble floors and decorations, with huge sofas covered in blankets to prevent them from being damaged by their pet beagle – who has a large, green yard to run around in.
Sharma’s car collection doesn’t quite compare to that of other captains – boasting only a BMW M5 that’s worth a slightly more modest £90,000.
The couple love to travel, jet setting all over the world in business class, luxury cars and on boats – from the UK to Australia, the Maldives and Dubai.
With this year’s Indian Premier League already underway, having kicked off officially over the weekend, the WAGs will be travelling back and forth from eight of India’s major cities with wardrobe and children and tow.
And while it may sound like a tough life – there’s no doubt the lucky ladies will be relaxing poolside, drink in hand, for the majority of the coming weeks, hoping their spouses will be the ones to bring home the expected £3million prize money.
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