The Indian Premier League 2025 is already grabbing massive attention, with viewership rising match after match. Meanwhile, the Pakistan Super League is also set to begin on 11 April, where some of the biggest names will showcase their talent in this popular tournament. However, it’s still not quite as popular as the IPL due to various reasons.
Looking at the bigger picture, the IPL clearly dominates when it comes to viewership. The league has long been considered the ‘big brother’ of T20 leagues. It was reported that IPL 2024 shattered several records, garnering 620 million live-stream viewers. Additionally, Star Sports, which holds the TV broadcasting rights, recorded up to 510 million viewers during the tournament’s initial games, highlighting the immense scale of the IPL. Moreover, prior to IPL 2024, it was revealed that the IPL is the world’s second-biggest league in terms of per-match value, only behind the NFL, proving just how massive the IPL is.
But what about the captains? Now that IPL 2025 is going and PSL 2025 is set to start soon, let’s take a look at the salary comparison between the highest-paid IPL captains and their PSL counterparts.
IPL 2025 Captains Salaries
| Captain | Team | Salary (INR) |
| Rishabh Pant | Lucknow Super Giants | INR 27 crore |
| Shreyas Iyer | Punjab Kings | INR 26.75 crore |
| Pat Cummins | Sunrisers Hyderabad | INR 18 crore |
| Ruturaj Gaikwad | Chennai Super Kings | INR 18 crore |
| Sanju Samson | Rajasthan Royals | INR 18 crore |
| Axar Patel | Delhi Capitals | INR16.5 crore |
| Shubman Gill | Gujarat Titans | INR16.5 crore |
| Hardik Pandya | Mumbai Indians | INR 16.35 crore |
| Rajat Patidar | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | INR 11 crore |
| Ajinkya Rahane | Kolkata Knight Riders | INR 1.5 crore |
PSL 2025 Captains Salaries
| Team | Captain | Salary Category | Salary (INR) approximately |
| Karachi Kings | David Warner | Platinum (USD 300,000) | INR 2,47,50,000 |
| Peshawar Zalmi | Babar Azam | Platinum (USD 220,000) | INR 1,81,50,000 |
| Lahore Qalandars | Shaheen Afridi | Platinum (USD 220,000) | INR 1,81,50,000 |
| Multan Sultans | Mohammad Rizwan | Platinum (USD 220,000) | INR 1,81,50,000 |
| Islamabad United | Shadab Khan | Platinum (USD 220,000) | INR 1,81,50,000 |
| Quetta Gladiators | Saud Shakeel | Diamond (USD 220,000) | INR 1,81,50,000 |
Clearly, there’s no comparison, as the mighty financial muscle of the IPL is visible to everyone. The 2025 captains’ salaries significantly outshine those of the skippers in PSL 2025, showcasing the robust financial setup of the Indian Premier League. Rishabh Pant leads the list with a staggering INR 27 crore as the captain of Lucknow Super Giants. He is also the most expensive player in IPL history, followed closely by Shreyas Iyer of Punjab Kings at INR 26.75 crore. In stark contrast, the highest-paid captain in PSL 2025 is David Warner of Karachi Kings, who earns approximately INR 2.47 crore (USD 300,000). The rest of the PSL captains, including Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, and Mohammad Rizwan, also fall under the Platinum category, with salaries around INR 1.81 crore.
