Gambling companies have a strong hold on sponsorship in cricket

The sponsorship for Pakistan's series against Sri Lanka was dominated by gambling companies where many of them pushed their advertisements with a slight change in name. 

This is not the first time surrogate advertisement has been seen where Pakistan players have been involved; such advertisement was also seen in Pakistan's home series and Pakistan Super League (PSL) matches as well.

While responding to related questions, PCB Director of Media Sami Ul Hasan said that every country reserves the right to partner with sponsors that adhere to their own laws and the visiting team does not have the right to object.

Sami further claimed that investigations were also carried out in Pakistan but no connections were found and that PCB is keeping close tabs on things regarding this.

Most of the companies during the Pakistan and Sri Lanka series were betting companies. However, they are not allowed to openly advertise on Sri Lanka's home soil which is why slight changes were made to their respective names.

When the company's name is slightly changed, this is called surrogate advertisement; the sponsor company by the name IXBet made a slight change to its name by replacing certain alphabets.

Another prominent betting company Dafa Bet uses the name Dafa News. However, they stick to their original name for matches in England since betting is legal in the country.

The betting companies during Pakistan's series against Sri Lanka also included Indian companies such as Golden 444 and MG Line.