During the ICC World Cup 2023, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma received more hits on their Wikipedia pages than Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. The two cricket stars, who played key roles in India’s journey to the World Cup final in Ahmedabad, surpassed the global football icons in terms of online encyclopedia page visits.
Virat Kohli’s Wikipedia page had over 5 million visitors, securing the top spot, while Rohit Sharma closely followed with more than 4.7 million hits. Ronaldo and Messi, with 4.4 million and 4.3 million hits, respectively, trailed behind the Indian cricket legends in the third and fourth positions.
Despite their outstanding performances—Kohli being the Player of the World Cup with 765 runs and Rohit securing second place with 597 runs—India faced a heart-wrenching defeat against Australia in the final.
The World Cup was a success off the field as well, with host broadcasters reporting impressive viewership figures. Star Sports channels drew in 518 million fans on television, while 295 million viewers tuned in via the OTT platform Disney+Hotstar. The India vs Australia final set a new peak viewership record on Disney+Hotstar, reaching nearly 5.9 crore, surpassing previous records set during the India-New Zealand semifinal.
The tournament’s overall success was highlighted by India vs Pakistan league match, which recorded a peak concurrency of 3.5 crore viewers, underscoring the immense popularity and global appeal of cricket’s premier