ICC World Cup: No opening ceremony this time, here's why

As the ICC World Cup is about to get under way in India, the cricket board of the nation has decided to do away with an opening ceremony, reports suggest, despite initially having grand plans for the same.

As per multiple reports, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had planned a gala event at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on October 4 before the start of the tournament.

Bollywood celebrities like Ranveer Singh and Tamannaah Bhatia were to be present at the event along with singers like Shreya Ghoshal, Asha Bhosle, and Arijit Singh. Fireworks and a laser show were also expected to mark the start of the tournament.

The ceremony was slated to begin after the Captains' Day event, but only the latter has taken place despite no official announcement coming about the scrapping of the opening event.

The Times of India reported an official saying that there never had been any plans for an opening ceremony ahead of the ICC World Cup.

"There was never an opening ceremony planned for the World Cup. I can confirm that. In the case of the IPL, you can have a short opening ceremony, as the match starts in the evening. Here, the match starts in the afternoon," the publication said, citing the source.

England will take on New Zealand in the first game of this edition, and the match starts at 2 pm IST. Despite the deviation from previous versions of the World Cup, where an opening ceremony was organised, there is much anticipation in the nation and the world, to see some of the finest cricketing teams go up against each other.