The 11th edition of Indian Premier League will kick off on Saturday, April 7, and the grand opening ceremony will feature performances by top Bollywood celebrities.
Here's everything you need to know about the opening ceremony:
Performances:
Padmaavat actor Ranveer Singh was set to entertain cricket fans at Wankhade with his amazing dancing skills this Saturday. However, a shoulder injury has prevented him from taking part in the event.
"After multiple medical checkups, the doctors have strongly advised Ranveer Singh not to perform at this year's IPL opening ceremony in which he was doing the grand finale act. They feel his high-energy performance would only overstrain his shoulder and aggravate the injury," the actor's spokesperson said in a statement.
Parineeti Chopra will also be missing from the opening ceremony. She withdrew due to her busy shooting schedule.
"Parineeti Chopra was to perform at this year's IPL opening ceremony," Chopra's spokesperson said in a statement cited by NDTV. "She was shooting non-stop for Namaste England in Patiala and had back-to-back, pre-committed endorsement commitments."
"So, unfortunately, she did not have enough time to rehearse in spite of her best efforts. Being a thorough professional, Parineeti spoke to Wizcraft and explained to them that she was not ok putting up a compromised performance. Wizcraft has been gracious enough to understand this and agrees with Parineeti. She would not be performing at the gala opening," it added.
According to a BCCI statement, actors Varun Dhawan, Prabhu Deva and Hrithik Roshan, Jacqueline Fernandez and Tamannaah Bhatia will both be performing at Saturday's opening ceremony.
Time and Venue:
The opening ceremony will kick off at 5 pm IST on Saturday at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. The opening act is expected to end 15 minutes before the toss for the match between Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians.
Live Streaming:
Streaming app Hotstar, who are the official digital streaming partner for the 2018 IPL, will broadcast all the matches live.
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