Feature
Sania-Hingis win BNP Paribas Open title
Indian Wells (US): Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza have completed a dream first tournament together, beating Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina 6-3, 6-4 to win the BNP Paribas Open women’s doubles title here.
The No.1 seeds, Hingis (Switzerland) and Mirza (India) didn’t lose more than four games in any set all fortnight.
After cruising through the first set, they fell behind 2-4 in the second to No.2 seeds Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina. But they flipped the script from there with four straight games to end it 6-3, 6-4 on Saturday.
Hingis has won 11 Grand Slams in the team discipline (nine in women’s and two in mixed) while Sania has claimed three Grand Slams (all in mixed) — and their doubles partnership was eagerly awaited in the tennis circuit.
“This is something we were hoping for,” Hingis said after the win.
“She hits a big forehand, especially on the right side, and I can move and finish off the point. She prepares, I finish. That’s pretty cool to me,” she added.
Hingis expressed her satisfaction at the performance of the pair in the tournament.
“I’m very happy we made this move. Obviously, we had partners we played well with, like me last year with Flavia, and changing was a big move.”
“I’m very happy it worked out, because you never know what to expect. Winning the tournament in our premier, it’s new energy, and hopefully we can keep it up,” Hingis said.
Mirza echoed Hingis’ sentiments but admitted that she didn’t expect to win in such a dominating fashion.
“On paper, obviously we are supposed to be a good team, but it doesn’t always turn out that way when you step on the court,” Sania said.
“So, we’re really happy we weren’t just able to win, but win in such dominating fashion, not losing a set and being down just two times in the whole two weeks.”
Sania was asked what makes them such a good team in terms of strategy on the doubles court.
“She’s one of the best people who can complement the way I play,” the Indian said.
“She’s got probably some of the best hands in the world at the net. For me, I need that. I need someone who can finish the balls off where I set them up.”
“And that’s really it. Like I said, on paper everything looks great, but you still have to go out there. Names don’t do anything. You have to go out and 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.
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