Shikhar Dhawan Questioned by ED Over Links to Gaming App 1xBet
New Delhi, Aug 4 — Former India opener Shikhar Dhawan was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday in connection with an alleged money laundering case linked to an online gaming app he once endorsed in advertisements.
Officials said Dhawan was called in to clarify details of his advertising contract with the betting app 1xBet. He arrived at the ED office around 11 a.m. and was questioned for several hours. Recently, another former cricketer, Suresh Raina, was also summoned by the agency as part of the same probe.
Dhawan, who owns the South Delhi Superstarz team in the Delhi Premier League, retired from all forms of cricket in August last year after a career that spanned more than a decade. Over his international career, he played 34 Tests, 167 ODIs, and 68 T20Is, scoring more than 10,000 runs across formats.
The 1xBet platform promotes itself as a sports betting and online casino site, offering games like Aviator, slot machines, and live betting on cricket, football, basketball, tennis, and e-sports. It also allows payments through Telegram. The company is headquartered in Cyprus and is considered one of the world’s largest online casinos, with sponsorship deals in European football.
However, the brand has faced regulatory troubles. Investigations into its financial activities forced the company to withdraw services from countries including the UK, US, Russia, Spain, and France.
Dhawan’s alleged association with the app comes close on the heels of the Mahadev Satta App controversy, which drew attention after celebrities like Ranbir Kapoor, Boman Irani, Hina Khan, and Shraddha Kapoor were linked to its promotions. That case revealed a massive Rs 5,000 crore hawala racket spread across the UAE and Pakistan.
Meanwhile, India is tightening rules around the gaming industry. Last month, Parliament passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, which seeks to regulate online gaming and e-sports while banning all money-based online games. Government data shows 1,524 gambling platforms were banned between 2022 and June 2025.
