Feature
Vijender Singh clinches WBO Asia Pacific title in New Delhi
Photo: indiatoday
New Delhi: Indian boxing star Vijender Singh scaled a new high in his ever-soaring professional career as he clinched the WBO Asia Pacific Super Middleweight title with a dominating win over former WBC European champion Kerry Hope on Saturday.
The 30-year-old Indian took all 10 rounds to systematically dismantle the 34-year-old Welsh-born Australian and record his seventh straight win in the circuit, a year after turning professional.
Tonight was also the longest that Vijender spent inside the ring to clinch a win since turning pro besides being his first points win after six knockouts. The six-footer from Haryana scored 98-92, 98-92, 100-90 to be the unanimous winner.
Vijender, who as an amateur held the distinction of being India’s first Olympic and World Championships medallist, was hardly pushed despite playing all 10 rounds, and was cheered deliriously by a packed partisan crowd.
The Indian had the who’s who of sports, politics and entertainment industry cheering him from the ringside and he put up a dominating performance to send the crowd into hysteria with his lethal right jabs and uppercuts.
“It’s not about myself, it’s about my nation, my country,” Vijender said after being crowned winner.
From Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to celebrated woman boxer M C Mary Kom, who choked a bit while acknowledging a loud applause from the crowd, star wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, cricketers Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina to actor Randeep Hooda, celebrities adorned the front rows by the ringside and Vijender did not disappoint any of them with yet another clinical performance in what was to be a 10-round contest.
Vijender seemed to be looking for a knockout blow from the very beginning even though Kerry was the more attacking of the two. But the Australian’s inability to connect cleanly proved to be his undoing against a rival, who waited patiently to throw his accurate blows.
To his credit, Hope tried his best early on but just could not find a way to breach Vijender’s defence, hampered to an extent by his shorter arms.
The moment the final bell was sounded, Vijender’s British trainer Lee Beard lifted him up to celebrate even before the decision had been announced, sending the crowd into a frenzy.
“This comes after a lot of hard work put in by me, my trainer, my team. I thank my coach, my promoter and my team who have done a fantastic job.
“I also thank all the fans, the celebrities and sportspersons who have come to watch my bout today. The countdown has just begun,” Vijender said.
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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