Cricket Dreams Shattered: Karnataka Cricketer’s Family Scammed of ₹24 Lakh in Fake IPL Offer

A promising 19-year-old cricketer from Chinchani village near Chikkodi, Belagavi in Karnataka saw his aspirations turn into a nightmare when cyber fraudsters posing as IPL team agents duped his family of over ₹24 lakh.

Rakesh Yadure, an aspiring young player, had participated in a state-level cricket tournament held in Hyderabad in May 2024. His performance apparently caught the eye of supposed “selectors”—or so he was made to believe months later.

Fraudsters acting as representatives for the IPL team Rajasthan Royals approached Rakesh Yadure (19), an aspiring cricketer from Chinchani village near Chikkodi in Belagavi district. He got messages on Instagram admiring his abilities and offered him a position on the IPL squad.

This came after his performance in a state-level cricket tournament held in Hyderabad in May 2024. The communication led him to think that cricket committee selectors were present at the Hyderabad event. Rakesh received this message from an account called ‘Sushant_srivastava1’ four months after the event. He believed it anyhow. It stated, “We will include you in the Rajasthan team. Fill up the application form and submit 2,000 rupees. Rakesh fully out the form.

On April 19, 2025, scammers transferred ₹23,53,550 to his family via internet transfer. They offered him match money of ₹4.8 lakh each match. The scammers left without a trace after stealing the money. Rakesh’s father is a security guard at the KSRTC. He borrowed money from numerous people to fulfil his debts. Later on, the family approached the police. A case has been filed at the district cybercrime police station, and investigations are ongoing.

SP Bheemashankar S Guled has cautioned the public not to fall victim to such scams. “No one should fall victim to the network of fraudulent messages that come online.”