Responsible gaming
Betting should be a bit of fun on top of the cricket — never a way to make money or fix a money problem. We want everyone who uses an ID we set up to stay in control, so here is our plain guidance.
Set a budget before you start. Decide what you are happy to treat as entertainment spending and stick to it. If losing that amount would hurt, it is too much.
Never chase losses. The urge to get it back is strong, and following it is what turns one poor evening into a month you regret. If you are down, stop for the day.
Withdraw your winnings. Take money out rather than letting a big balance sit and tempt you into more.
Take breaks. If chasing a score has stopped being fun, or you find yourself playing to escape stress, step away. Time limits help.
Keep it private and secure. Only play with your own money, keep your login to yourself, and never share OTPs or banking passwords with anyone.
Warning signs
Watch for these in yourself or someone close to you: spending more than planned, borrowing to bet, hiding how much you play, betting to escape low moods, or feeling anxious and restless when you are not playing. Any of these is a reason to pause and reach out.
Free, confidential help
You do not have to figure this out alone. These services are free, confidential and available any time:
GamblingTherapy.org BeGambleAware.org
If you would like to slow things down or stop, tell us on WhatsApp and we will help you do that too. This is meant to be enjoyable, and we would much rather you play a little and well than a lot and badly.
The one number that tells you the truth
Forget the balance showing in your account. It moves every day and it flatters the good weeks. There is only one honest figure, and you can work it out in two minutes.
Open your bank or UPI history for the last month. Add up everything that went out to the betting platform. Add up everything that came back. Subtract the second from the first. That number is what the month actually cost you.
Do it now, before reading anything else on this page. Most people are wrong about this figure, usually by a lot, because losses are easy to forget and wins are easy to remember. If the number is bigger than you expected, that is not a reason to feel ashamed. It is a reason to set a limit tonight rather than next month.
Money that should never go near a betting account
Some money is genuinely spare and some is not, and the difference matters more than the amount. Nothing that belongs in these categories should ever be used to bet, no matter how good an opportunity looks.
- Money borrowed from anyone, including a friend, a relative, an app or a card.
- Money set aside for rent, school fees, medicines or a loan instalment.
- Savings meant for something specific that somebody else is depending on.
- Money you would need to hide from the person you share finances with.
If a bet can only be funded from one of those, the answer is not a smaller bet. The answer is no bet, and probably a conversation with somebody.
Setting a limit that survives a bad evening
Deciding a figure in your head does not work, because the version of you deciding is calm and the version who breaks it is not. Make it something outside yourself instead. Ask the platform to set a deposit limit on the account, since reductions usually apply immediately while increases only take effect after a delay. That delay is the whole point. It protects tonight's decision from tonight's mood.
Then add one simple rule of your own: never top up during a match. Not once. A top-up while play is going on is a reaction, not a decision, and almost nobody who does it can explain the reasoning afterwards.
Saying it out loud
This is the hardest part, particularly where money is a family matter and admitting a loss feels like admitting a failure. You do not have to explain everything in the first conversation. A single line will do: my betting has got out of hand and I need to step back.
You can also talk to somebody outside the family first, which many people find easier. Two names to know are Gambling Therapy and BeGambleAware. Talking to them costs nothing, whatever you say stays private, and our footer has the links on every page. Nothing is reported to anyone and nobody needs to know you contacted them. Talking to someone before you are certain there is a problem is not premature, it is simply the easiest time to do it.
Responsible gaming: your questions
How do I know if my betting is still normal?
Work out one number. Add up what left your bank for betting last month, subtract what came back, and look at the difference. Then ask whether you would be comfortable saying that figure out loud to someone who shares your finances. If the answer is no, the amount is not the problem. The fact that it has to stay hidden is.
How do I set a monthly limit and actually stick to it?
Do not keep it in your head, because the version of you who set it is calmer than the version who breaks it. Ask the platform to put a deposit limit on the account. Reductions usually apply straight away while increases only take effect after a delay, and that delay is what protects you. Then add one rule: never top up while a match is on.
Is betting every single day a problem by itself?
Not automatically, but it is worth looking at honestly. The question is whether you are choosing to bet or simply doing it out of habit because the app is there. A useful test is to stop for a week. If that feels easy, frequency is not your issue. If a week feels genuinely difficult, that difficulty is the information you needed.
I am hiding this from my family. Is that a warning sign?
It is one of the clearest ones, and it usually appears before any money problem does. Privacy about your own spending is reasonable. Actively hiding the amount, deleting messages or explaining away where money went is different, and it tends to grow rather than settle. If concealing it is taking effort, that effort is telling you something worth listening to.
I borrowed money to bet once. How serious is that?
Serious enough to stop and think properly, even if it was small and even if you paid it back. Borrowing to bet changes what the bet is, because now a loss costs you twice. It also rarely stays a one-off. Treat it as a line, not a mistake to move past quietly, and talk to somebody about it rather than promising yourself it will not happen again.
What does chasing losses actually look like?
It is quieter than people expect. You bet a bit more than usual, on something you would not normally choose, mainly to get back to where you were an hour ago. It feels logical at the time. The giveaway is the reason: you are betting because of the last result rather than because you wanted this bet. The next match does not know what happened in the previous one.
How do I take a proper break?
Use the platform's own time-out rather than relying on willpower, since a time-out cannot be cancelled early and willpower can. Pick longer than feels necessary, because a day or two is not really a break. Take the shortcut off your home screen while it runs. If you find yourself counting the hours until it ends, extend it instead of waiting it out.
Should I tell someone, and who?
Yes, and it does not have to be family first if that feels impossible. Many people find it easier to speak to a support line before speaking to anyone at home. One line covers it: my betting has got out of hand and I need to stop. Nobody needs the whole story from you the very first time you speak.
Where can I get help without anyone finding out?
Two free and confidential services, Gambling Therapy and BeGambleAware, are linked at the foot of every page here, and you can contact either one without giving your name. Nothing is reported to your family, your bank or anybody else, and you do not have to have decided that you have a problem before you contact them. Being unsure is a perfectly normal reason to get in touch.
Will you refuse to help me if I tell you I am struggling?
We will not open anything further for you, and we will say why plainly rather than pretending not to have noticed. That is not a punishment. What we will do is stay in the conversation, point you to the free support services, and help you set a deposit block or a time-out if you want one. Telling us gets you help, not silence.