Is cricket the sport with the largest amount of sports betting in India?

India’s national cricket team is one of the top sporting sides in the world. It reflects a love of the game that pervades all parts of society right across India.

From Virat Kohli hitting a Test Match boundary to a youngster taking a catch in a dusty street game, it’s a sport that has become ingrained as a part of Indian culture.

Cricket has been the most popular sport in the country since the days of the British Raj. It was originally introduced by the East India Company in the 18^th century.

Something about the format and style of the bat and ball game struck a nerve with Indians. It has grown and grown in popularity ever since.

Today India has the biggest and most popular cricket leagues in the world. The crowds are enormous, the fans the most enthusiastic.

With such enthusiasm and support, it is one of the most popular places to play cricket too. India also has the world’s largest cricket stadium, the Narendra Modi in Ahmedabad.

Many top overseas players are attracted to play in India too. And the nation has been chosen to host the 2023 Cricket World Cup.

Major Indian players like Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni are turned into major national celebrities. Their every move is watched in the media.

With a growing population rising above 1.3 billion, any Indian sport has a huge potential following. Yes, the minor sports can call on plenty of support – but even a casual visitor to the country can see the over-riding appeal of cricket to the Indians.

Everywhere you go across the vast country of deserts, jungles and mountains you can see youngsters, and sometimes adults too, playing on makeshift pitches on rough patches of ground or even in the street.

It’s common to see people sitting around holding a cricket ball or tossing it up over and over again to practice catching.

With such a vast pool of enthusiastic talent, it’s no surprise that Indian teams are always among the favourites for any cricket tournament. India has especially become renowned as the world centre for limited over cricket and white-ball night games.

Cricket is the number one sport

In comparison, hockey, tennis and football are popular but minor sports in the subcontinent. They have their stars and their followings but nowhere near the popularity of cricket.

Placing sports bets online in India on horse racing, kabaddi and polo is also a part of the culture – but cricket ranks far above all other sports.

This national love is reflected in the popularity of gambling on cricket. This is the number one sport for sports betting in India.

Online eSports sites are increasingly thriving. Their main business: cricket, of course.

Indians love placing wagers on the outcome and details of ongoing or future cricket matches. Most Indians think they know all about this complex sport – and can’t wait to demonstrate their knowledge by predicting cricketing outcomes.

Online casinos have been attractingrising numbers of Indian players in recent years. The revenues in this area have been soaring, particularly involving the classic card game of poker – which has escaped all restrictions because it is classed as a game of skill not luck.

But eSports are still out in the lead, ahead of table-top games from the casinos. And among Indian sports there’s just the one that is head and shoulders above the rest.

That’s why any new eSport operator has to include plenty of cricket offerings on their site. It’s the only way to attract lots of new customers.

In fact, eSports sites have been growing fast in India. There is a national culture for wagering on sports events and online sites make that so much more convenient, quick and easy.

The leading sites have to compete to gain a share of the customers. That’s why it pays to look out for an exciting array of special offers to lure new clients to the various sites.

These can include free deals and discounts, or even free bets, cashback options and deposit bonuses. Tactics like these are designed to bring in new customers to an eSport betting site – but whatever the offer they won’t change the public’s love for the one king of Indian sports.

Indian cricket has survived a slump that has reduced live audiences in many other parts of the world. Games are popular in every format at international, national and local levels.

The huge growth of the Indian Premier League means it attracts most of the best players in the world. The dazzling spectacle of the big IPL games are major TV events in India and often enjoyed across the world too.

The number of spectators, viewers and fans in this highly professional cricket league is still rising. The matches of the IPL are the pinnacle of club cricket and have become some of Asia’s biggest betting events.

So don’t expect cricket to topple from its perch at the top of India’s sporting world any time soon. Online betting has made little dent on its popularity.

In fact, many expert observers think the easy availability of a little flutter on the game is only going to increase the excitement. Can cricket get even more popular in India?

It seems hardly possible… but like a batter awaiting a new delivery, let’s just wait and see what happens.