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England v Ireland: Josh Tongue Test debut to earn punter £50,000
Chief cricket writer at Lord's
Last updated on31 May 202331 May 2023.
When Josh Tongue walks out at Lord's on Thursday he will not only earn his first Test cap, but also £50,000 for a family friend who placed an unlikely bet 14 years ago.
Tim Piper wagered £100 at odds of 500-1 when Tongue was only 11 years old that he would go on to play a Test for England.
Now, Piper is in line for huge payout when Worcestershire's Tongue makes his debut against Ireland.
"I've kept the bet slip in a cupboard all these years," Piper tells BBC Sport. "I just thought to myself 'it must be worth £100'. If he doesn't make it, he'd make us proud anyway. This is just a bonus for him to get in the Test team."
Incredibly, Piper wanted to place the bet when Tongue was aged just six, but could not find a bookmaker that would offer odds.
Piper, 56, was a team-mate of Tongue's father Phil at Redditch Cricket Club in the 1990s. Josh was taken to the club as a child and began his cricketing life as a leg-spinner.
"It was amazing," says Piper. "There was this little kid who bowled leg-spin, googlies and top-spinners. It was like Shane Warne."
Though the Tongue family moved away from Redditch when Josh was six, Piper kept tabs on him as he was converted to a pace bowler in the Worcestershire academy.
He placed the bet directly with the head office of gambling firm Coral and "must have sent a cheque to them".
"The betslip says 'to play a Test match for England'," says Piper, who is the landlord of the Cricketers Arms pub in Redditch.
It was a bet that looked unlikely to be a winner last summer when Tongue considered retiring because of a persistent shoulder injury.
But he found a cure through Botox injections and will make his Test debut after a late call-up to the England squad last week.
"He had all those injuries, but I never gave up on him," says Piper. "I kept thinking 'maybe it can happen'. These last two weeks have been a mad turnaround."
Piper is hoping to be at Lord's and is planning on spending some of his winnings taking the whole Tongue family out for a celebratory dinner.
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Will Carols now make him 'jump through hoops' - KYC, and all that .... just to get Paid-Out?
They can always blame The Gambling Commission - and Government White Paper - for a delay.
Chief cricket writer at Lord's
Last updated on31 May 202331 May 2023.
When Josh Tongue walks out at Lord's on Thursday he will not only earn his first Test cap, but also £50,000 for a family friend who placed an unlikely bet 14 years ago.
Tim Piper wagered £100 at odds of 500-1 when Tongue was only 11 years old that he would go on to play a Test for England.
Now, Piper is in line for huge payout when Worcestershire's Tongue makes his debut against Ireland.
"I've kept the bet slip in a cupboard all these years," Piper tells BBC Sport. "I just thought to myself 'it must be worth £100'. If he doesn't make it, he'd make us proud anyway. This is just a bonus for him to get in the Test team."
Incredibly, Piper wanted to place the bet when Tongue was aged just six, but could not find a bookmaker that would offer odds.
Piper, 56, was a team-mate of Tongue's father Phil at Redditch Cricket Club in the 1990s. Josh was taken to the club as a child and began his cricketing life as a leg-spinner.
"It was amazing," says Piper. "There was this little kid who bowled leg-spin, googlies and top-spinners. It was like Shane Warne."
Though the Tongue family moved away from Redditch when Josh was six, Piper kept tabs on him as he was converted to a pace bowler in the Worcestershire academy.
He placed the bet directly with the head office of gambling firm Coral and "must have sent a cheque to them".
"The betslip says 'to play a Test match for England'," says Piper, who is the landlord of the Cricketers Arms pub in Redditch.
It was a bet that looked unlikely to be a winner last summer when Tongue considered retiring because of a persistent shoulder injury.
But he found a cure through Botox injections and will make his Test debut after a late call-up to the England squad last week.
"He had all those injuries, but I never gave up on him," says Piper. "I kept thinking 'maybe it can happen'. These last two weeks have been a mad turnaround."
Piper is hoping to be at Lord's and is planning on spending some of his winnings taking the whole Tongue family out for a celebratory dinner.
=======================
Will Carols now make him 'jump through hoops' - KYC, and all that .... just to get Paid-Out?
They can always blame The Gambling Commission - and Government White Paper - for a delay.
Show More
No chance of getting a bet like that on today.
Make up a name and say it's your 10 year old nephew/niece and you want to bet him/her to play for the senior England team(Football or Cricket) - doubt you'd be offered any odds at all and even if you were it would £10 max at 50/1.
Make up a name and say it's your 10 year old nephew/niece and you want to bet him/her to play for the senior England team(Football or Cricket) - doubt you'd be offered any odds at all and even if you were it would £10 max at 50/1.
https://community.betfair.com/cricket/go/forum/view/94046/165694/cricket
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