The stage is set for the opening ceremony of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, ahead of the first game of the tournament between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Friday. Every year the IPL gets going to a glittering ceremony and this year is no different. The line-up this year features Bollywood actors Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, singer Sonu Nigam along with musical maestro AR Rahman. The opening ceremony will be held at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, ahead of the IPL 2024 opener between defending champions CSK and RCB.
The opening ceremony is expected to start at 6:30 PM while the match will get underway at 8 PM. On the eve of the opening ceremony, the IPL organisers also announced that DJ Axwell, a member of the Swedish House Mafia, will also enthrall the fans ahead of the first match.
Where to watch the IPL 2024 opening ceremony?
While the opening ceremony will be telecasted on the Star Sports Network, viewers can watch it for free on Jio Cinema.
The IPL organisers took a slightly different stance over the opening clash this season, breaking the defending champions vs runners-up trend, going with the MS Dhoni vs Virat Kohli battle in the first match of the season. The season promises to be a belter, with many enthralling duels expected on the field.
The 17th season of the T20 league would see many comebacks taking place. While Rishabh Pant has returned to professional cricket for the first time since December 2022, MS Dhoni will also be marking his return to the sport, having last featured in the IPL 2023 campaign. It would also be Virat Kohli's first assignment since the birth of his son Akaay while Hardik Pandya will be leading Mumbai Indians, a franchise he had left a couple of seasons ago.
Meanwhile, Dhoni stepped down as captain of CSK on the eve of their opening match against RCB. Opening batter Ruturaj Gaikwad will lead CSK in IPL 2024.