PV Sindhu, Dipa Karmakar pip Dhoni, Kohli and Messi in this ranking

PV Sindhu, Dipa Karmakar and Sakshi Malik remained the stars at Rio 2016 Olympics for India. They were lesser-known names among Indians, but the quadrennial event in Rio de Janeiro in August turned them into breakout stars overnight.

So much so that they became the most searched sportspersons of 2016, as per Yahoo, who reviewed the sportspersons Indian users searched for the most in this calendar year.

Sindhu, who bagged the silver medal in the women's badminton event at Rio, tops the list, while Dipa, who came surprisingly close to bagging a bronze medal in the women's artistic gymnastics event, comes second. Superstars of Indian cricket, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli, meanwhile, come third and fourth respectively.

The fifth spot in the Yahoo India list of top searches (sportspersons) is taken up by Sakshi, the bronze medallist in the women's 58kg freestyle wrestling event. 

Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi, who has experienced an eventful calendar year, meanwhile, is the only sportsperson from outside India, to make it to the list.

Here is the top 10 (rankings-wise)

1. PV Sindhu

2. Dipa Karmakar

3. MS Dhoni

4. Virat Kohli

5. Sakshi Malik

6. Lionel Messi

7. Narsingh Yadav

8. Sachin Tendulkar

9. Sania Mirza

10. Saina Nehwal