Riteish Deshmukh jokes on why Dream11 IPL is being played this year; netizens get serious

The Dream 11 Indian Premier League was delayed by many months due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the return of cricket seems to have raised the excitement for cricket enthusiasts. And that has resulted in the league breaking viewership records in the first few days. With advertisers set to gain from this coverage, Riteish Deshmukh made an interesting observation jokingly, but one that got netizens very serious.

READ: Dream11 IPL 2020: Top 5 Run-chases In The History Of The Tournament Post Rajasthan's Win

Riteish Deshmukh on Dream11 IPL ads

Not the title sponsor, the coverage is dominated by advertisements of many platforms on fantasy cricket. Riteish quipped that it was as if the reason the league was being played was to sell more fantasy cricket games.

Looking at all the advertisements I feel this year the @IPL is played to sell more fantasy cricket games.

— Riteish Deshmukh (@Riteishd) September 27, 2020

Many agreed with the statement and some joked that half of the ads were that of fantasy cricket games and other half by ads of his Housefull franchise co-star Akshay Kumar. 

True. There are only two type of ads, half of them are for #FantasyCricket games and the rest have @akshaykumar starring in them. Wondering which fantasy team, he will promote.

— Abhishek Nagpal (@abhishek_nagpal) September 27, 2020

However, some linked the games to ‘gambling.’ In a fantasy cricket game, users gets to create their own virtual teams, and receive points and rewards as per the performances of the real players on the field. With most of the apps involving an entry fee and other charges, the person also stands a chance to lose the money if the players do not perform as per expectations.

Some termed it as a ‘satta bazaar’, calling it betting, and some quipped that fantasy cricket had legalised this. One wrote that the platform should be declared as a ‘certified casino.’

READ:Dream11 IPL 2020 Rajasthan Vs Punjab: Top Highlights And Stats From New Record Run-chase

Meanwhile, despite lack of an audience, the Dream11 IPL has kicked off in style in the UAE with some high-scoring encounters and all teams except Hyderabad getting on the scoreboard with one win at least,  

The latest one between Punjab and Rajasthan got Riteish’s attention as he praised Rahul Tewatia with a Baazigar reference, and Nicholas Pooran’s effort to save a six with acrobatic effort. On the professional front, the actor had featured in Baaghi 3 earlier this year.

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READ:Who Is Rahul Tewatia? Rajasthan All-rounder Leads Team To Highest Dream11 IPL Run-chase