T20 World Cup 2024: Canadian rapper Drake bets Rs 5 crore on team India to defeat Pakistan in high-stakes clash
PTC News Desk: Drake, the well-known Canadian musician, wagered INR 5 crore on Team India to win the highly anticipated T20 World Cup 2024 match against Pakistan at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on Sunday, June 9.
In the history of the T20 World Cup, India and Pakistan will face off for the ninth time. The Men in Blue had won seven of their eight previous meetings against Pakistan, while Pakistan had only triumphed once in the tournament's 2021 edition.
India is regarded as the heavy favourite to win the highly volatile match due to their domination versus Pakistan in T20 World Cup history. Drake chose to wager on the Rohit Sharma-led team to win the highly anticipated match in New York given the Men in Blue's impressive record versus the Men in Green.
Popular betting site Stake used its Instagram account to reveal that Drake was betting on the high stakes match between India and Pakistan.
Drake is hardly the first person to wager on cricket. The Canadian rapper wagered INR 2 crore in advance of the IPL 2024 Final that Kolkata Knight Riders would defeat Sunrisers Hyderabad to win the title. When Pat Cummins' Sunrisers Hyderbad lost to Shreyas Iyer's KKR to win the elusive IPL trophy for the third time, Drake picked the winning team.
India and Pakistan had constratting results in their opening matches
In the meantime, the results of India and Pakistan's respective opening matches for the T20 World Cup 2024 campaign were divergent. The Men in Blue overcame a meek 97-run target set by Ireland to begin their campaign with a commanding eight-wicket victory.
After hitting a game-winning 52 off just 37 balls, captain Rohit Sharma was forced to depart with a shoulder injury. Ireland was bowled out for 96 thanks to major contributions from Jasprit Bumrah (2/6) Arshdeep Singh (2/35) and vice skipper Hardik Pandya (3/27).
In contrast, Pakistan lost the Super Over to the USA in an unpleasant and unexpected manner. After Pakistan scored 159 in 20 overs, the co-hosts leveled the score and sent the game into the Super Over.
USA scored 18/1 in an over in the Super Over, setting a goal of 19 for Pakistan to pursue. But limited to just 13, the Men in Green were unable to pursue the target.
- With inputs from agencies
