BCCI to discard opening ceremony from next year's IPL: report

Mumbai: Reportedly, it has been said that the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) is thinking to scrap the opening ceremony for the next season’s Indian Premier League (IPL), as the apex cricket governing body of India thinks the extravagant opening ceremony to be a "waste of money".

In an interview with the Indian Express, a BCCI official stated, "The opening ceremonies are a waste of money. The cricket fans don't seem to be interested, and the performers have to be paid a lot." In February, the IPL 2019 opening ceremony was cancelled in the wake of the Pulwama terror attacks and the budgeted money was donated to the armed forces.”

In a statement, the BCCI had stated, "The estimated cost of hosting an IPL opening ceremony is Rs 20 crore. It was unanimously decided that a sum of Rs 11 crore be contributed to the Indian Army, Rs 7 crore to the CRPF and Rs 1 crore each to the Navy and Air Force respectively."

After the Chairman of Committee of Administrators (CoA) tenure came to an end, BCCI’s president seat was vacant. However, soon in October, the post was occupied by former Indian captain and cricketer Sourav Ganguly. Following Ganguly’s appointment as the BCCI president, the apex cricket governing body in India brought forward the plan of a charity to claim "everyone's heart".

Vinod Rai stated, "As a federation, we felt it was best not to hold a regular IPL opening ceremony. Instead, we decided to contribute the amount towards a cause that is so important and close to everyone's heart."

For several years, the super rich cricket league in the world had invited various Bollywood and international celebrities like Katy Perry, Akon and Pit Bull to perform in the opening ceremony of the IPL.