SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Following the dramatic clash at Lord’s between England and New Zealand in yesterday’s 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup final, GentingBet has committed to honouring all pre-tournament bets on New Zealand winning the Cricket World Cup.
The Black Caps fell short of winning the World Cup yesterday after England were named as the 2019 champions on a little-known boundary-countback rule, following a tie between the two sides.
At the beginning of the summer, the New Zealand team were priced at 10/1 to take the trophy home. Billy Cook, Head of Sportsbook at GentingBet, commented: “Of course we’re proud of England and everything they’ve achieved, but our hearts go out to New Zealand for the cruel manner of their loss. It’s a series a bad luck that stopped them lifting the trophy.
“Their players showed great sportsmanship in the wake of that defeat and for that reason we’ve decided to honour pre-tournament bets to customers who backed New Zealand to win the tournament.”
Australian bookmaker Sportsbet has also reportedly refunded 11,458 people a total of AU $426,223 (£239,000) after the operator had tipped New Zealand to win the final head-to-head or to win the tournament outright.
The company’s spokesperson Rich Hummerston has reportedly stated that it wouldn’t be fair to take money off New Zealand fans after the Black Caps lost on a technicality rather than performance.
