Sachin Tendulkar may be gone, but the Master Blaster continues to rule online in the hearts of his fans, show Google Search Trends, despite the hot streak in which Virat Kohli finds himself in.
However, with recent overseas losses of the Indian national team and other controversies plaguing MS Dhoni, it seems that cricket enthusiasts have found a new icon in Virat Kohli.
A last minute withdrawal by captain MS Dhoni and the stunning knock by Virat Kohli in the debut match of Asia Cup battle against Bangladesh may have been the cause of much speculation and excitement among cricket enthusiasts and has impacted the ranking of these two cricketers on Google Search Trends.
A search trend analysis over the past 30 days reveals how online search on Virat Kohli is on the rise leaving the popular Indian captain MS Dhoni on second spot.
Unrelated to cricket, a celebrity love-story-in-the-making linking actor Anushka Sharma?s alleged visit to New Zealand last month (in February) to be with Virat Kohli sparked huge speculation about their alleged relationship which has also fuelled search spikes on Google.
Also hot in online searches, not surprisingly, after a spectacular comeback in the IPL by becoming the most expensive player, Yuvraj Singh now features in third place.
Having said that, these icons pale in comparison when compared with Sachin Tendulkar, who despite having retired from international cricket continues to rule the roost on Google Search Trends as the undisputed number # 1 cricketing icon.
Also coming back from the cold, Virender Sehwag and Suresh Raina are seeing significant traction on Google search placing them at fourth and fifth place respectively.
While Delhi boy Virat Kohli was most searched from West Bengal, Maharashtra,and Karnataka, Dhoni found traction from Tamil Nadu, Kerala and (also) West Bengal. Chandigarh and Delhi worked for Yuvraj Singh and Virender Sehwag respectively with searches also coming in from Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu (for both).
The New Faces of Indian Cricket
Talking about the new faces of Indian cricket, Ravindra Jadeja is followed by openers Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane. Searches on Rahane spiked when he scored his debut ton on February 15, 2014. Cheteshwar Pujara and Bhuvneshwar Kumar are also among those being searched consistently on Google search.
