Feature
Indian hockey team hammers Pakistan by 6-1 in HWL semifinal match
London: The Indian hockey team continued its domination of arch-foes Pakistan, handing them a 6-1 thrashing in a 5th-8th place classification match of the Hero Hockey World League Semifinals here today.
Goals by Ramandeep Singh (8′, 28′), Talwinder Singh (25′), Mandeep Singh (27′, 59′), and Harmanpreet Singh (36′) helped India decimate Pakistan and set up a clash with Canada in the 5th-6th pace playoff.
The result dented Pakistan’s hopes of booking a berth to participate at the Hockey World Cup to be held in Bhubaneswar next year.
India displayed good attack right from the start with their first real shot on goal coming as early as the opening minute when Ramandeep Singh set up one for an unmarked Akashdeep Singh in the circle.
But Akashdeep could not make a powerful connection to put the ball past Pakistan goalkeeper Amjad Ali.
Mandeep, meanwhile, helped India win their first Penalty Corner in the sixth minute but Harmanpreet Singh’s flick was defended well by Pakistan.
Soon after, India were seen putting pressure on Pakistan, interrupting their counter-attack cornering Pakistan player with a three-man defence.
The strategy worked, with Pakistan losing the possession.
Satbir Singh, playing his 50th international match, was quick to spot Ramandeep in the circle who seized the opportunity for India to take a 1-0 lead in the 8th minute.
India took their lead to a convincing 4-0 in the second quarter.
First it was Pardeep Mor who did well with a fierce pass to Talwinder Singh who simply had to angle his stick to beautifully deflect the ball into the post in the 25th minute.
Brilliantly assisted by SV Sunil, Akashdeep, who had missed a golden opportunity early on, was exceptional with his dribble in the baseline to get past the defender to nick the ball towards the net.
It was Mandeep Singh who got the touch on the ball before it beat the keeper to take India’s lead to a healthy 3-0 in the 27th minute.
India’s fourth goal came in the 28th minute when Sunil assisted Ramandeep from the far post. It was a diving effort by Ramandeep that ensured he scored his second goal of the match.
Pressure mounted on Pakistan when India won their second PC in the 36th minute. Harmanpreet Singh made use of the opportunity as he came up with an improvised drag-flick, kept the ball low to beat the Pakistani keeper and take India’s lead to a formidable 5-0.
Pakistan finally found a breakthrough in the 41st minute when Ajaz Ahmad took advantage of a defensive error on India’s part to put the ball past keeper Vikas Dahiya.
The final quarter saw Pakistan make some desperate attempts on goal but India did well to contain their opponents with good defence.
India won a PC in the dying seconds of the match when Pakistan defender fouled in the circle through a stick tackle but Harmanpreet’s effort was defended well and India walked away with a comfortable 6-1 win.
The State Scores Extra High on Gaming-Friendly Industry Index
Meghalaya scored 92.85 out of 100 possible points in a Gaming Industry Index and proved to be India’s most gaming-friendly state following its recent profound legislation changes over the field allowing land-based and online gaming, including games of chance, under a licensing regime.
The index by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) uses a scale of 0 to 100 to measure the level of legalisation on gambling and betting achieved by a state based on the scores over a set of seven different games – lottery, horse racing, betting on sports, poker, rummy, casino and fantasy sports
Starting from February last year, Meghalaya became the third state in India’s northeast to legalise gambling and betting after Sikkim and Nagaland. After consultations with the UKIBC, the state proceeded with the adoption of the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021 and the nullification of the Meghalaya Prevention of Gambling Act, 1970. Subsequently in December, the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021 were notified and came into force.
All for the Tourists
The move to legalise and license various forms of offline and online betting and gambling in Meghalaya is aimed at boosting tourism and creating jobs, and altogether raising taxation revenues for the northeastern state. At the same time, the opportunities to bet and gamble legally will be reserved only for tourists and visitors.
“We came out with a Gaming Act and subsequently framed the Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021. The government will accordingly issue licenses to operate games of skill and chance, both online and offline,” said James P. K. Sangma, Meghalaya State Law and Taxation Minister speaking in the capital city of Shillong. “But the legalized gambling and gaming will only be for tourists and not residents of Meghalaya,” he continued.
To be allowed to play, tourists and people visiting the state for work or business purposes will have to prove their non-resident status by presenting appropriate documents, in a process similar to a bank KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure.
Meghalaya Reaches Out to a Vast Market
With 140 millions of people in India estimated to bet regularly on sports, and a total of 370 million desi bettors around prominent sporting events, as per data from one of the latest reports by Esse N Videri, Meghalaya is set to reach out and take a piece of a vast market.
Estimates on the financial value of India’s sports betting market, combined across all types of offline channels and online sports and cricket predictions and betting platforms, speak about amounts between $130 and $150 billion (roughly between ₹9.7 and ₹11.5 lakh crore).
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Delhi are shown to deliver the highest number of bettors and Meghalaya can count on substantial tourists flow from their betting circles. The sports betting communities of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are also not to be underestimated.
Among the sports, cricket is most popular, registering 68 percent of the total bet count analyzed by Esse N Videri. Football takes second position with 11 percent of the bets, followed by betting on FIFA at 7 percent and on eCricket at 5 percent. The last position in the Top 5 of popular sports for betting in India is taken by tennis with 3 percent of the bet count.
Local Citizens will Still have Their Teer Betting
Meghalaya residents will still be permitted to participate in teer betting over arrow-shooting results. Teer is a traditional method of gambling, somewhat similar to a lottery draw, and held under the rules of the Meghalaya Regulation of the Game of Arrow Shooting and the Sale of Teer Tickets Act, 2018.
Teer includes bettors wagering on the number of arrows that reach the target which is placed about 50 meters away from a team of 20 archers positioned in a semicircle.
The archers shoot volleys of arrows at the target for ten minutes, and players place their bets choosing a number between 0 and 99 trying to guess the last two digits of the number of arrows that successfully pierce the target.
If, for example, the number of hits is 256, anyone who has bet on 56 wins an amount eight times bigger than their wager.
Foodman Vishal Singh Honored for Hunger Free World Mission in Bangkok
Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
Cheers and Cheers: Barzilla’s Joyful Ode to Inclusivity and Celebration
Casino Days Reveal Internal Data on Most Popular Smartphones
Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists
IPL 20202 UPDATE: KXIP vs MI IPL Dream11 Team Prediction for Today Match, Update Point Table of all Team.
In a Live debate AAP leader Syed Asad Abbas hurls abuses to BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma.
‘India’s Most Wanted’ trailer out Arjun Kapoor on hunt of Osama-Bin-Laden
Time to move on: Sonakshi on Shatrughan’s joining Congress
