In anticipation of the highly anticipated India vs Pakistan showdown in the Cricket World Cup 2023, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) arranged a grand pre-match ceremony. This event boasted a line-up of esteemed musicians, including Sukhwinder Singh, Shankar Mahadevan and Arijit Singh. Fans from both nations eagerly anticipated this spectacle, but to their bewilderment, the ceremony remained hidden from their TV screens.
The perplexing absence of the ceremony from televised broadcasts left many ardent cricket enthusiasts glued to their TV sets wondering about the cause of this unexpected turn of events. To shed light on the situation, it’s imperative to delve into the sequence of events that transpired.
On Friday, October 13, the BCCI made an official announcement regarding the participation of these celebrated singers in the pre-match festivities. Understandably, fans assumed that such an exciting event would naturally find its way onto television screens across the subcontinent and beyond. Unfortunately, this was not to be the case.
The mystery surrounding this non-televised ceremony was soon unveiled by Star Sports, the designated official broadcaster of the World Cup in India. In a statement shared on the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), Star Sports clarified that the pre-match ceremony was exclusively intended for the passionate fans who had the privilege of being present in the stadium itself.
In their official statement, Star Sports conveyed, “The ceremony at the Narendra Modi Stadium before match 12 of ICC Men’s CWC 2023 (India Vs Pakistan) was specifically designed for the in-stadium fans. The ceremony was not intended for broadcast.”
The pre-match ceremony for the #INDvPAK game today will not be televised as it is only for the stadium audience. We have you covered for the rest of the match, the highlights & everything in between!
Tune-in to #INDvPAK in the #WorldCupOnStar
LIVE NOW | Star Sports Network pic.twitter.com/XOVcJoTrma— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) October 14, 2023
Seeking to assuage the disappointed viewers, Star Sports assured them that comprehensive coverage of the match, along with highlights and additional content, would be readily available for their enjoyment.
With the countdown well underway for the highly anticipated India vs. Pakistan (IND vs. PAK) clash in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, set for October 14, a palpable sense of excitement is sweeping across the multitude of sports enthusiasts in both nations. These age-old arch-rivals are gearing up for a monumental showdown, and the fervour has reached its zenith, fuelled by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) orchestrating an elaborate pre-match ceremony. There were several performances by formidable singers like Arjit Singh, Sundi Chauhan, Shankar Mahadevan and Sukhwinder Singh.
Subsequently, the ceremonious prelude gave way to the all-important toss, which India clinched, opting to bowl first. The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad is known to favour chasing teams due to the dew factor that arises in the evening.
India’s captain, Rohit Sharma, revealed to Ravi Shastri during the toss that Shubman Gill had made a return to the playing XI after successfully recovering from dengue fever. Gill, in turn, replaced Ishan Kishan at the top of the batting order.
