Cricket and football reading deskCricket betting questions answered
Plain answers to the questions that come up before, during and after a match. Where this guide cannot confirm a fact for Pakistan, it says so.
- Rates
- Commission
- Age and law
- Limits
Read the answers in order
The answers start with reading a price and end with the limits that protect your budget. Most readers find the early answers settle the questions that come after them.
Rates
Commission
Age and law
Limits
Figures this page relies on
Each number below comes from Betfair's published terms or its safer gambling pages, and nothing on this page is a live figure.
Minimum age for an account
18
Maximum time out offered
30 days
Hours before a raised deposit limit applies
24
Questions to settle before the toss
The most useful questions are the ones answered before the first ball. Work through these before you open a market.
What is the market asking?
Identify the question behind the price, whether it is a match winner, a totals line or a player market.
What is my limit?
Decide the deposit amount, the loss limit and the stopping point while you are calm, not during the chase.
Where these answers stop
A question-and-answer page can sound more certain than it should. These limits apply to every answer here.
No live figures
Answers describe how markets work. They do not quote a current rate, a price or a result.
Facts only where confirmed
Where a point about Pakistan is not confirmed, the answer says so.
Exchange and sportsbook answers differ
Many questions turn on whether a price is set by the house or by customers. The two answers below mark the difference.
House price
A fixed-odds sportsbook sets one price for each outcome. The margin is part of that price, and it does not change with the bets other customers place.
Exchange price
On the Betfair Exchange, customers back or lay against each other. Commission applies only to net winnings per market, not to losing bets.
Three points to carry into any match
Three short points that cover most of the questions above, worth reading again before each match starts.
A rate is a moment
The rate you read is valid only while the screen shows it. Read it again before you act.
The rules decide settlement
Abandoned play, ties and extra time are settled by the market rules, not by how the innings felt.
Limits come first
A limit set before the match is the one most likely to be kept.
Cricket betting questions, one by one
These answers cover the practical questions readers raise most often about cricket markets.
What does a cricket rate mean?
A rate is the price attached to one outcome. A low rate marks an outcome the market sees as likely, and a high rate one it sees as less likely.
Is the betfair sportsbook the same as the exchange?
No. A fixed-odds sportsbook sets its own price, while the exchange matches customers against each other. This guide cannot confirm which Betfair products are offered in Pakistan.
Who is my account with?
Betfair's terms say customers outside the UK, Australia and New Zealand open their account with Betfair International Plc, licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority under licence MGA/CRP/131/2006.
Can I bet at 17 if a parent agrees?
No. Betfair's terms require account holders to be at least 18, whatever a parent or guardian agrees to.
Is cricket betting permitted in Pakistan?
This guide cannot say. The terms make the customer responsible for local law, and a prohibited list that does not name Pakistan is not a statement that betting is allowed.
What should I do if a bet feels out of control?
Stop placing bets, use the deposit, loss and time tools, and speak to someone you trust. Waiting to win back a loss is the usual route to a larger one.