Sports betting has been on the rise in India and on the back of it, a village in Gujarat almost pulled off an elaborate con with 'Fake IPL'. The cricketing tournament was fabricated in a remote farm at Molipur village of Mehsana district and it reached its 'knockout quarterfinal' stage before being stopped by police, which resulted in the arrest of four people. IPL 2022 Betting Racket Busted: 5 Arrested From Kolkata’s Eden Gardens for Betting During LSG vs RCB Eliminator.

It is understood that the organisers of the 'Indian premier cricket league' accepted bets on their official Telegram channel from punters in the Russian cities of Tver, Voronezh and Moscow. IPL Controversies- Part 6: 'Fake IPL Player' Incident in 2009.

The fake league commenced three weeks after the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 season concluded and the games were streamed live on a YouTube channel labelled 'IPL'. As many as five HD cameras were installed to broadcast live action.

The Live Action

As per Times of India, a total of 21 farm labourers and unemployed youths from the village - who were paid Rs 400 to act as players - participated in the league, sporting jerseys of Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, and Gujarat Titans.

In order to make the atmosphere more authentic, the organisers played crowd-noise sound effects during the games while there were umpires that carried fake walkie-talkies to the ground. They even arranged a commentator from Meerut to mimick Harsha Bhogle.

Harsha Bhogle's Reaction

As per the police, Shoeb Davda, who worked in a Russian pub for eight months, was the 'chief organiser' of the con. 'Shoeb hired the farm of Ghulam Masih and installed halogen lights there. He readied 21 farm labourers, promising them Rs 400 per match. Next, he hired cameramen and bought t-shirts of IPL teams,' said Police officer Bhavesh Rathod.

After interrogation, Shoeb revealed that he had Asif Mohammed in a Russian pub, who led the masquerade. Asif introduced the Russian gamblers to the nuance of cricket.  'The first instalment of bets from Russia amounting to Rs 3 lakh had just been delivered when they were caught.' said the police.

Shoeb would take live bets over the Telegram channel. He would instruct Kolu, the umpire to signal fours and sixes. Kolu communicated the same to the batsmen and bowlers. Acting on the instructions, the bowler would deliver a slow ball, enabling the batsman to hit it for a four or a six,' Rathod said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 12, 2022 09:58 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).