Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 is back with non-stop cricketing action for the next two months, The tournament will start off with a grand opening ceremony at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium on Friday, March 31. The opening ceremony generates tremendous interest among fans every year since it usually features the biggest stars of Bollywood. This year is no different as the glitzy event will witness the participation of Tamannaah Bhatia, Rashmika Mandanna and Arijit Singh.
The official Instagram page of IPL dropped a video from the practice of the opening ceremony. In the clip, Tamannaah can be seen shaking a leg with a group of dancers on stage.
The highly anticipated opening ceremony is set to be an unforgettable event. Reportedly, the audience will get to enjoy three headlining acts. Rashmika Mandanna and Tamanna Bhatia will lead talented performers to set the stage ablaze with their sizzling moves. Furthermore, Arijit Singh will mesmerize fans with some of his famous chart-topping songs.
But before the season opener, we will also have the opening ceremony, which is scheduled for 6:00 PM IST. Meanwhile, the match will begin at 7:30 PM IST.
Today’s opening ceremony is also the first to take place in IPL since 2018. It was cancelled in 2019 by the BCCI, as a tribute to the soldiers who lost their lives in the Pulwama attack.
Meanwhile, Covid-19 restrictions prevented it from happening from 2020-2022. Superstar singer Arijit SIngh will be performing at the event, and fans are expecting to be enthralled by his voice.
The opening ceremony will begin at 6 pm on Friday. Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings will face off in the tournament opener immediately after the ceremony. While Hardik Pandya-led Titans are the defending champions, MS Dhoni’s Super Kings are four-time champions. Both teams are being touted as strong contenders to go all the way this year. Titans boast of having genuine match-winners in their squad. The likes of Shubman Gill, David Miller, Wriddhiman Saha, Mohammad Shami and Rashid Khan make them a formidable team. Plus, they have Hardik Pandya as their leader.
Chennai has been one of the most consistent sides in the history of the tournament. Ravindra Jadeja, Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali provide a great balance to Super Kings. Besides, they will be the sentimental favourites as this may be Dhoni’s last IPL. There is very little to choose between the two teams and fans couldn’t have asked for a better match-up for the first game of the IPL. A thrilling contest is on the cards.
This year, even WPL’s inaugural season saw a glitzy opening ceremony, with AP Dhillon, Kiara Advani and Kriti Sanon performing.
So, the BCCI have already set a standard this year and will be expected to live up to it.
