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Luring netizens to a bettor life

Big stakes or not, you will always find the Royal Calcutta Turf Club here teeming with people armed with small booklets that they almost clutch to their hearts. Somshuvra Laha reports.

Updated on: May 17, 2013 02:23 AM IST
Hindustan Times | By , Kolkata
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Big stakes or not, you will always find the Royal Calcutta Turf Club here teeming with people armed with small booklets that they almost clutch to their hearts. In the book is information on racehorses, their pedigree, a history of their performance, that of the jockey, information about the trainer and finally the odds for or against the horse. It’s the punter’s bible.

International betting websites are now creating the most comprehensive fora on these lines. Take the case of the Indian domestic Twenty20 league. Every renowned website provides a detailed preview and a SWOT (strength, weakness, opportunities, threats) analysis of players and teams.

Protestors-shout-slogans-against-the-three-cricketers-who-are-allegedly-involved-in-spot-fixing-in-Bangalore-PTI-photo
Protestors-shout-slogans-against-the-three-cricketers-who-are-allegedly-involved-in-spot-fixing-in-Bangalore-PTI-photo
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Named ‘markets’, these are different conditions of the match on which users registered from any part of the world can place bets. The ‘markets’ range from total run-outs to the total boundaries hit by a particular batsman or any one team in a match. You can also place bets on whether the first ball of the innings would be a no-ball. The stakes for that are among the highest.

There is the Public Gaming Act of 1867 that makes gambling in India illegal. But sportsbetting.net.in finds out a loophole in the Act which says that ‘nothing in this Act shall apply to games of mere skill where played’, meaning in absence of other laws against them, wagering on games of skill is legal. This makes a compelling point for first-timers willing to try out their luck.

 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Somshuvra Laha

Somshuvra Laha is a sports journalist with over 11 years' experience writing on cricket, football and other sports. He has covered the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, the 2016 ICC World Twenty20, cricket tours of South Africa, West Indies and Bangladesh and the 2010 Commonwealth Games for Hindustan Times.

Check India news real-time updates, latest news on Hindustan Times and more across India.
Check India news real-time updates, latest news on Hindustan Times and more across India.
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