Glittering opening ceremony marks the start of IPL 9

The ninth edition of the IPL was marked by a glitzy opening ceremony which saw a mix of Bollywood razzle-dazzle and high-octane performances from international artists including that of West Indian cricketer Dwayne Bravo’s smash-hit rap ‘Champion’. The ceremony took place at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Stadium at the National Sports Club of India which witnessed a spectacular two-hour and 15-minute long event. The event was attended by attended by the BCCI top brass, franchise team owners, players and support staff of all the eight participating teams, saw Bollywood actors Ranveer Singh, Katrina Kaif, Jacqueline Fernandez and rapper Yo-Yo Honey Singh all giving glittering performances. One of the most awaited performances of the opening gala was DJ Bravo’s much-anticipated ‘Champions dance’. Dressed in a white blazer and black trousers, The West Indian all-rounder, who was a part of the West Indies World T20 winning team, made the crowd dance as fellow cricketers cheered him. Bravo also danced to another number ‘Chalo Chalo’ and was joined on the stage by Bollywood playback singer Ankit Tewari who sang an Indian version of ‘Champion’ – ‘Hindustan Mein Bade-Bade Champion’. The event concluded with a performance by American dancehall reggae group Major Lazer making everyone get in the groove with Shweta Pandit singing along as the glamour-filled opening ceremony came to an end. Like earlier opening ceremonies, the skippers of the eight teams took part in the oath-taking ceremony. Led by Team India team director Ravi Shastri, the eight captains signed the MCC Spirit of Cricket pledge for fair play. Zaheer Khan (Delhi Daredevils), Suresh Raina (Gujarat Lions), David Miller (Kings XI Punjab), Gautam Gambhir (Kolkata Knight Riders), Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Rising Pune Supergiants), Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bangalore), David Warner (Sunrisers Hyderabad) and Rohit Sharma (Mumbai Indians) took the MCC Spirit of Cricket pledge one by one. Defending champions Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit placed the trophy back on the podium and IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla and BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur joined the skippers on stage.The cricketing extravaganza begins from today as the defending champions Mumbai Indians open take on the IPL debutants Rising Pune Supergiants, led by skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Did you miss the opening ceremony? – IPL 2016 Opening ceremony Live social feeds

Topics

Featured Section

Current Series

IPL 2025 Auction

IPL Teams

Cricket Fantasy Tips

Cricket Stats

ICC Rankings

Interviews

Twitter Reactions

Cricket Appeal

Social Tracker

More Links

# Follow Us

Other Sports

Glittering opening ceremony marks the start of IPL 9

Latest Articles

Parag is the reason behind Samson's RR exit: S Badrinath

Mohammad Azharuddin slams Bumrah's workload management

The Hundred Men's 2025: Match 11, SOB v NOS Match Prediction