Betting technology breaks new grounds during World Cup

As the 2015 Cricket World Cup nears its final stages, bookies in the city are doing all they can to mint quick money while it lasts.

India is their favourite to win the cup a second time in a row, said senior Delhi Police officers. However, the bets have been placed slightly in favour of Australia in its clash with title-holders India for the semifinal, set to be played on Thursday.

The betting rate for this match has been fixed at 50:52 in favour of Australia. In the quarterfinal match against Bangladesh, the odds were 16:18 in India’s favour.

The revelations surfaced during the ongoing investigations after the Delhi Police’s Crime Branch busted a syndicate indulging in large scale betting during the tournament.

One person has been arrested with 110 mobile phones, which were being used to provide ball-by-ball betting rates to bookies. Shanti Swaroop Bhatia, 57, was arrested from his home in west Delhi’s Paschim Vihar last Thursday while reportedly providing live betting rates through mobile phones for the quarterfinal match between India and Bangladesh.

Bhatia is said to have set up a special operating system in his almirah through which he could converse with over 100 people simultaneously.  “The mobile phones were set up in such a way that his voice was audible to all phones installed in the wooden fixings. He was found announcing the betting rates on the phones after receiving them from a Main Line Provider source. He received the rates through his mobile phone connected to his headgear,” said JCP (Crime Branch) Ravindra Yadav in a statement.

A senior police officer associated with the probe told Deccan Herald that Bhatia was receiving the rates from Mumbai, which in turn came from Dubai. However, his role was limited to that of a mediator between the bookies and punters. “Bhatia was taking bets from 110 people. He was earning about Rs 6 lakh during each match,” said the officer.
The police said they are geared up to track and bust similar betting syndicates over the remaining matches of the tournament. “We are on the trail of Bhatia’s clients and other bookies involved in betting,” said the officer.