There are two religions in India - Cricket and movies. There are a very small set of people who don't follow both. So naturally, these are the dream careers are many. Suitably so, they are among the top-paying professions. Cricketers are considered to be real-life hero/ines compared to the movie stars. The following and money goes next to none.
Common Thought
Only rich and people with connections become cricketers. They earn heavily.
Though the first statement is partially true to a certain level of getting initial opportunities it is impossible to sustain without enormous talent. To be in the 11 amongst 1 billion people needs great talent, timing, and opportunity. Almost all the well know cricketers are from humble backgrounds except a few.
The famous international cricketers earn enormous amounts equivalent to the earnings of the rest of all the crickets in the country combined. The sad truth is those who aren't on the international stage earn pretty much the same as a normal government employee.
Types of Cricketer
International cricketer
Domestic cricketer
Franchise cricketer
Payscale
Grade A - 7 crore INR/ year
Grade B - 5 crore INR/ year
Grade C - 3 crore INR/year
Ranji - 12 to 13 Lakh/year
Work Location
22 yards, anywhere in the world.
Holidays
If you are in the Indian team, it's all about cricket till you retire. Sometimes holidays are meant to play local games, improve your skills. Most of the time if you are not in the top roaster, you need to keep improving to hold onto your place in the team.
Other Options in Hand
Coaching, commentary and brand ambassadors are the most relevant. If you have a secondary skill that you mastered, that is a nice way out.
Job Shift
Unless you are injured or lost belief in your talent, you would want to stay in the field. But if you need to shift, it will involve lots of learning and change in lifestyle.
Flow Chart
Club cricket -> Ranji -> India A -> India
Under 19 -> IPL -> India
Club cricket -> India A -> India
IPL -> India
Best Teams to Play For
Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super kings (IPL). Delhi, Mumbai in Ranji.
Top People to Search For
God of Cricket - Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, Mahendra Sigh Dhoni, Jhulan Goswami, Mithali Raj
Health Effects
Cricketers are injury-prone but lifestyle is healthy.
Experience Hub
At the end:
Bank balance (good person) - 2 crore INR to 1000 crore INR
Closeyss - 20 people
Respect - Good recognition, fans and followers.
Post-retirement
Respect stays, people still look up to you. You have many options to choose from - stay in cricket in some other form or try the govt job offered to you.
Early stages
Its fancy, you get a lot of attention, might receive negativity but best of all your presence will be felt.
Tips
Enjoy the new lifestyle, this time won’t comeback. If you aren’t successful this is only time for the limelight. Make the best of it, create social media accounts and create a personal brand.
A few years
If you are passionate about cricket and playing in tournaments regularly nothing changes. Your dreams of playing for India stays intact, in case you are not already selected.
Tips
Start investing, keep learning a new skill for post-retirment. Cricketers retire early before 40 so they have a long career left, plan it well.
Goalometer
Work pressure: (7/10)
High - Self-induced and peer-induced but it is high. Firstly to get a place, next to retain the place and later for statistics and after that the expectations. It is a high-pressure job.
Low - An established international cricketer in amazing form and nothing to prove - this is rare, very very rare.
Normal - Being a cricketer is literally like carrying the kit bag always behind you, it is heavy. You gotta have control over your mind as much as your reflexes.
Patience: (7/10)
High: Getting into the India team is one of the toughest journeys. Few people get a chance to represent the country at the fag end of their careers, but it is worth it. Every single day you need to work towards your goal.
Normal: Your wicket or the batter hitting your six doesn't depend on your skill alone, it is sometimes out of your hands. You gotta stay patient till your time comes.
Sub-ordination: (7/10)
High: This is key. Till you make it big, being sub-ordinate to captain and coach is important and may be whoever could potentially bring you to the attention of selectors. Even if you are the most talented cricketer, it depends on the selectors and those in power to select you.
Normal: On the field, you are sub-ordinate to no one, the more dominant you are are, the more respected and confident you would be. The better you perform, the more weightage you get.