Cristiano Ronaldo & Lionel Messi: Most-admired sportsmen in the world!

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are the most admired sports personalities in the world. While this might not come as a surprise to many, they are closely followed by India's cricketing legends Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli in the third and fourth spot respectively.

According to a survey conducted by YouGov, a British market research and data analytics firm, Tendulkar and Kohli are overshadowed only by the two footballing greats.

The study ranks Barack Obama as the most admired person in the world, across various fields, followed by Bill Gates and Xi Jinping. Ronaldo comes fourth, his best position to date. Meanwhile, Messi has seen a jump of four places and now occupies the seventh spot in the combined rankings. Whereas, Tendulkar and Kohli are ranked 12th and 18th respectively. The study surveyed more than 42,000 people in 38 countries and territories before compiling the list.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is 8th most admired person while Bollywood celebrities like Shahrukh Khan (14th) and Amitabh Bachchan (15th) are also ranked high on the list.

When it comes to the most admired women, Barack Obama's wife Michelle Obama tops the list, followed by Angelina Jolie and Queen Elizabeth II. Amongst Indians, Priyanka Chopra Jonas (10th), Aishwarya Rai Bachchan (13th), and Sudha Murty (14th) feature in the top 20.

Let us have a look at the complete top 20 list.