# Nikhil Varma Source: https://cricketin.org/authors/betting-analyst Betting and Odds Analyst. [Editorial policy](/editorial-policy) 18+ Betting money on cricket carries a direct risk of financial loss, and it can become an addiction. Real-money online gaming is banned across India under the PROG Act 2025, which came into force on 1 May 2026. If betting is already costing you money you need, or sleep, or people close to you, the free Tele-MANAS helpline is **14416**, and it runs in 20 languages. Our [page on help for gambling harm](/guides/help-for-gambling-harm-india) lists what else exists. --- Explains odds, margin and probability without pushing an operator Nikhil Varma Betting and Odds Analyst, Cricketin Portrait is a line drawing, not a photograph. ## About Nikhil Nikhil turns a price into arithmetic: what an odds line implies, where the book's margin sits, and why a bet with a good story can still be a bad bet. Statistics and pricing work in Bengaluru. These pages carry no operator name, no bonus code and no tip. Every worked example shows its numbers so a reader can redo it, and Rajeev Sathe reads the maths back before publication. ## What this role covers - Odds formats and implied probability - Overround, margin and how a book prices a market - Expected value and staking maths - Bet types, fancy and session markets ### Where the role stops Nothing here is a tip or a system. The maths explains why the house edge exists; it does not remove it. ## How a page with this name on it is checked Nikhil does not publish alone. Every page is read back by a second person before it goes out, and the byline names both. The standard both work to is in our [editorial policy](/editorial-policy), and the method behind the numbers is set out in [how we test](/how-we-test). Sources are linked in the page itself, primary text first. Where something cannot be checked yet, the page says so instead of guessing. Anything found wrong after publication is logged on the [corrections page](/corrections) with the date and what changed. ## Pages Nikhil signs ### Written by Nikhil (10) - [Is the Aviator Game Fair? Provably Fair and RTP Explained](/blog/is-aviator-game-fair) - [Cricket Bet Types Explained - 12 Common Markets](/guides/cricket-bet-types-explained) - [Cricket Betting Glossary - 60 Terms in Plain Words](/guides/cricket-betting-glossary) - [Expected Value in Betting - Do the Maths Yourself](/guides/expected-value-explained) - [Fancy Bets in Cricket Explained - How They Work](/guides/fancy-bets-explained) - [How Bookmakers Set Cricket Odds - Full Breakdown](/guides/how-bookmakers-set-odds) - [How Cricket Odds Work - Read Any Price in Minutes](/guides/how-cricket-odds-work) - [Wagering Requirements - What a Bonus Is Worth](/guides/wagering-requirements-explained) - [What Is a Session Bet in Cricket - Risk Explained](/guides/what-is-a-session-bet) - [What Is Overround - The Fee Hidden in the Odds](/guides/what-is-overround) ### Reviewed by Nikhil (1) - [What the Aviator Game Is and How a Round Is Played](/blog/what-is-aviator-game) ## The rest of the team Every page on this site is written by one of these people and checked by another. - [Rajeev Sathe](/authors/editor-in-chief) — Editor-in-Chief, sets the rules for the site and reads back what other people write - [Anjali Deshmukh](/authors/cricket-analyst) — Cricket Analyst, writes the cricket rules, formats and match-fact pages - [Ananya Rathi](/authors/legal-writer) — Legal and Compliance Writer, writes the law, tax and advertising-rule explainers - [Farhan Qureshi](/authors/payments-expert) — Payments Expert, covers UPI, deposits, KYC and payment safety - [Neha Bhattacharya](/authors/responsible-gaming-officer) — Responsible Gaming Officer, checks the harm, limits and help-line pages - [Karthik Iyengar](/authors/data-editor) — Data Editor, checks the numbers, dates and tables, and reads back the site's own pages ## Contact and conflicts Questions about a page, a source or a correction go to the editorial desk through our [contact page](/contact). Name the page and the exact claim; a byline concern is handled the same way as a factual one. Nobody here is paid by an operator, and no payment on this site is tied to a conversion. How the site is funded is set out in the [affiliate disclosure](/affiliate-disclosure).