Feature
Jasprit Bumrah helps Ravichandran Ashwin with valuable tips for fourth innings
Adelaide: Seeing off-spinner Nathan Lyon make the most of the rough patches during the ongoing third day of the Indian second innings, India pacer Jasprit Bumrah said Ravichandran Ashwin will have a greater role to play during Australian’s second essay.
“Ashwin will obviously play a more crucial now role because with the rough, we saw Nathan Lyon using the rough to his advantage. He is an experienced bowler and knows what he has to do. So he will probably work on it and he will play a crucial role for sure,” Bumrah said at the end of the third day’s play here.
India are 166 runs ahead with seven wickets in hand and two days of play left.
“We were trying to figure out the lengths that are useful over here. In South Africa and England, there was a lot of lateral movement. Here the wickets are slightly flatter because you get bounce, but you have to be consistent.
“That’s the thing we have read over the years. We were trying to focus on that, that if we don’t give runs, we are creating pressure from both ends and then we could get wickets,” said Bumrah.
Bumrah said he is confident the tourists will take a healthy lead on day four.
“I think it is slightly in our favour because the late wicket (Kohli) was a good thing for them. But we have a good lead. First session tomorrow will be a very important. If we capitalise on that, that will leave us in a very good place in this match,” he said.
Asked about his transformation, Bumrah said ODI exposure helped him play the longest format better.
Jasprit Bumrah gives valuable tips to Ravichandran Ashwin to shine in fourth innings:
“Before South Africa, I was consistently playing one-day cricket. I was bowling and there were a lot of overs under my belt. I always try to learn and always try to ask questions. I try and keep an eye on the opposition as well, what is working for them, maybe try and learn from them.
“All these things always help you – do your research, do your homework, keep an eye on the lengths of the different grounds and different players, what they do,” said Bumrah.
Bumrah said he did not talk to anyone before embarking on the Australia tour.
“I didn’t talk to anyone in particular (for this Australian tour) but watching old footages, what works over here and how they have taken wickets. Watching good spells of old bowlers, what they have done over here, how to get wickets.”
“Asking the bowling coach questions and asking the senior players who have come here before who know what to do over here,” he said.
He was all praise for No.3 Cheteshwar Pujara’s patience which became the key in India being at an advantageous position.
“Pujara has showed a lot of patience, that is the key element in Test cricket. He knows his game in and out, and he knows his strengths. He is playing around that strength. He knows how to leave the ball well.
“He is playing with the bowlers’ patience as well. He has done that over the years, and he has started to play with a lot of maturity. That’s his strength. A great knock (in the first innings), and hopefully he continues tomorrow,” Bumrah said.
Entertainment
Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists
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.