Howzat: Indian Gang Organizes Fake IPL T20 tournament to fool Russian Gamblers

We are all aware of the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) high brand value and lavish nature. This one-of-a-kind event has significantly raised the profile of T20 cricket.

However, a small group of individuals in Gujarat even attempted to con this competition at a local farm and were successful in luring Russian gamblers to wager on the phony IPL matches.

According to the Times of India (TOI), the Mehsana district police have apprehended four people who were responsible for the entire scheme. It has been discovered that the Russians thought the entire event was set up so that it resembled actual IPL matches.

Five high-definition cameras were placed to record the game, five farm workers were transformed into cricket players while umpires utilized fake walkie-talkies to make it appear authentic. Farm laborers were used as the cricketers. The most intriguing and downright amusing aspect of the scheme was the hiring of a commentator from Meerut who could pass for Harsha Bhogle.

According to the report, the unemployed kids from Molipur village, who numbered around 21, were the players. They switched between wearing the uniforms of the Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, and Gujarat Titans. To make the crowd sound more authentic, background music with crowd noise was downloaded from the internet and played. The Indian Premier Cricket League event featured live streaming of the games on a YouTube account. Three weeks after the IPL 2022 ended, the group set up a Telegram channel where they posted the wagers from the Russian gamblers.

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Before the organizers of the bogus IPL were apprehended by the Mehsana police, it had advanced to the ‘quarter-final’ level. Shoeb Davda has reportedly been recognized as the ‘main organizer’ by the police. After working in Russia for eight months, he had just returned. Halogen lights were installed on Ghulam Masih’s farm after Shoeb hired it. He promised Rs 400 for each match, which helped 21 farm laborers get ready. He then recruited cameramen and purchased IPL team t-shirts, according to police officer Bhavesh Rathod.

Shoeb told the police that Asif Mohammed, who he had met while working at the Russian pub, was the con artist. Shoeb contacted the fake umpires, Sadiq Davda, Saqib, Saifi, and Mohammed Kolu, after arriving back in Molipur. Saqib, a Meerut local, was chosen to serve as the commentator. Shoeb would accept real-time wagers through the Telegram channel. He would give the umpire Kolu instructions to indicate fours and sixes using a walkie-talkie. Both the bowler and the batter heard the same message from Kolu. The bowler would follow orders and bowl a slow ball, allowing the batsman to hit it for a four or a six, the police stated