Betting and Cricket: A Strained Relationship

At Cricketaddictor, like you, we don’t just love to talk about cricket news and results, we love to discuss upcoming fixtures and what we believe might happen. As you know, we have a whole match prediction page on our site where we discuss just that.

When you talk about match prediction, it is clear that some people may use this information when placing bets. For some of our readers gambling on cricket is perfectly legal and accepted, but for others, it is not. In January we wrote of 11 people being arrested in Delhi for their roles in an illegal betting racket.

But what strikes cricket out almost more than any other sport has been the match-fixing of the players themselves. The last 20 years has seen a swath of cricketers imprisoned and banned from the game for match-fixing, including high profile international players such as Mohammed Azharuddin, Salman Butt, and Hansie Cronje. Speaking of the latter, just last month Indian businessman Sanjeev Chalwa was extradited to India to face charges for his involvement in match-fixing with Cronje back in the year 2000. His extradition coming nearly 20 years after his first arrest for the crime, and after a 4-year legal battle.

However, no league has probably been more widely hit by match-fixing in recent years than the IPL. With the 2013 spot-fixing scandal involving the Rajasthan Royals immediately coming to mind. Although all the players involved in the case were cleared 3 years later, a tweet from the former commissioner of the IPL Lalit Kumar Modi regarding a claim of match-fixing in a 2019 game went viral, calling many to ask for more action to stamp it out from the game.

Despite the issues that cricket has had over the years regarding match and spot-fixing, for many cricket spectators, it is a way to add a little bit more excitement to an already exciting game. Like most sports, there are a whole host of things you can bet on beyond who will win a game. Such as which player will score the most runs, hit the most sixes or take the most wickets.

For some of you who bet on the game it may be a way to back your favorite player or team, for others an educated guess or profession, and for the rest a little bit of fun once in a while. But for all of you who bet on the game, match predictions and tips from others will be key before placing that bet to increase its chances of success.

What is a team’s ranking at the moment/where are they placed in the league, what is the team/players form like at the moment, have there been any injuries, what is the weather likely to be, are all things to consider.

Whether you just like to read and talk with friends about upcoming games or you like to place a bet (legally), we can all agree on our desire to make the game free of match-fixing and corruption.