In the quiet village of Molipur, Gujarat, a bizarre cricket tournament took place in late June 2022. This wasn’t your typical game; it was a staged event created for the sole purpose of online betting, with a scheme that stretched all the way to Russia.

Constable Abdulgfar Saiyedali of the Special Operations Group in Mehsana received a tip about the peculiar matches. The games were rudimentary, featuring local farmers on a dried-out field, yet they were recorded as if for broadcast. Suspiciously, the umpire manipulated the rules, and the camera remained fixed on the pitch, ignoring the ball’s path—a clear sign that something was amiss.

Initially, Saiyedali didn’t think much of the event, considering it might be related to low-level gambling. However, upon further observation, he noticed that the matches were deliberately skewed. The umpire made incorrect calls, and the broadcast seemed designed to deceive.

A raid on July 7 revealed the full extent of the scam. Local farmers, paid by a fellow villager, were playing in a tournament orchestrated by Soyab Davda and Saifi Saqib, who followed instructions sent via Telegram by a man in Russia. The matches were listed on 1xBet, a controversial online betting platform, convincing gamblers that they were betting on legitimate games.

The police concluded that the tournament was part of a larger, more elaborate scam run by a mysterious group in Russia. The goal was clear: to rig the matches for online bettors, ensuring the house always won.

Investigations uncovered that this fake cricket tournament was just one of many. Such events, created purely for betting, have become a lucrative niche in the underground betting market. These matches often involve low-level players in obscure locations, providing an unmonitored platform for gambling activities.

The mastermind behind the Molipur event, Soyab Davda, claimed he was merely organizing the matches without knowledge of the gambling scheme. Despite his love for cricket, he found himself ensnared in a web of deceit that left him deeper in debt and disillusioned with the sport he once cherished.

This incident highlights the dark side of cricket, where the sport is manipulated not for the thrill of the game but for profit through fraudulent means. The investigation continues as authorities try to unravel the full scope of the operation and bring those responsible to justice.