IPL Opening Ceremony: Ranveer, Varun and Jacqueline Among Stars to Perform

Kolkata: The IPL opening ceremony has over the years been one of the most spectacular extravaganzas where cricket meets entertainment and it will be no different this year either as the likes of Ranveer Singh, Varun Dhawan, Jacqueline Fernandez and Parineeti Chopra will enthrall the fans with their performance in the 45-minute show that has been planned at the Wankhede Stadium prior to the start of the opening game between defending champions Mumbai Indians and Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings on April 7.

Speaking to CricketNext, a senior BCCI official said that reaching out to each and every fan has always been the idea while planning for these opening ceremonies and it is no different this time either as the board believes that these young actors will not only win the hearts of the young fans, but also reach the audience at home ahead of a spectacular season of entertainment on the cricket pitch.

“Ranveer, Varun, Jacqueline, Parineeti and Tamanna are some of the Bollywood stars who will set the stage on fire at the opening. Apart from that, you will also have the likes of Mika and Prabhudeva to entertain the fans. The idea is to not just give those at the ground a good time, but to also give those watching on television a show they will remember in the days to come." 

"It is always about starting well and the job is half done. The idea of having different opening ceremonies at different venues did not go down too well with the audience last time round, so this is the plan this time,” the official said.

Asked about rumours that Ranveer is being paid a whopping Rs 5 crore for the performance at the opening the official refused to get into details. 

“See, the budget is Rs 20 crore and that has been approved. Now, let us not get into minute details on who is being paid what for how long. As long as we are able to give you guys a show worth remembering, there shouldn’t be anything to complain about. We believe that this opening ceremony will just like in previous years, set the tone on what is expected to be a thrilling tournament over the next 50 days.”

This IPL will also see the return of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals after they were suspended for two years by the Lodha committee post the match-fixing fiasco that rocked the cash-rich league.

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Steve Smith, David Warner set to miss India series, IPL 2018 depends on NOC contents

Steve Smith and David Warner stood down as captain and vice-captain for rest of Australia's third Test match against South Africa following the ball tampering scandal.(AFP)

The disgraced Australian duo of Steve Smith and David Warner is not just staring at an ouster from IPL but is also facing the prospect of missing the India series later this year, as speculations over a length ban for ball tampering gained credence.

Cricket Australia is all set to announce the sanctions by early morning (IST) tomorrow and there is a possibility that both Smith and Warner could be out of international cricket for a considerable period of time.

If it’s a one-year ban, which looks likely, the home series against India in (December-January) will be played without the two superstars. Already young opener Matt Renshaw has flown to Johannesburg, indicating that Warner will also not be a part of the final Test match against South Africa.

Another bone of contention is their Indian Premier League contracts with Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad. There is every possibility that Smith may seek time out of cricket to sort out the mess he is currently in but the same can’t be said about Warner, who is one of the greatest T20 exponents of all time.

While the BCCI is awaiting sanctions from Cricket Australia, the key to the decision will be the contents of the No Objection Certificates (NOC) issued by their home board.

“What a lot of media channels are not understanding is that BCCI at this point has no right to terminate their contract. In case Cricket Australia has a clause in their contracts that gives them right to cancel the duo’s NOC for private leagues based on disrepute caused during international matches, then BCCI won’t even come into question.

“They won’t get a chance to play IPL,” a senior BCCI official, who deals with contract aspect told PTI today.

“If CA’s ban is exclusive of NoC given to them for IPL, they will be available for the league,” said the official.

However, reports emerging from Australian media primarily implicated Warner in the scandal.

According to Sydney Morning Herald: “David Warner’s international career is said to have become “untenable” with fears the one-time vice-captain has gone rogue as the fallout from the ball tampering crisis escalated on Tuesday. Teammates are furious with Warner over suspicions the batsman was the source behind a story incriminating Australia’s fast bowlers.”

The newspaper claimed that Warner may have played his last game for the country.

It was learnt that the temperamental Warner removed himself from the team WhatsApp group.

Australia’s Fairfax Media claimed: “Warner had emerged as the central character in the affair, with suggestions he was the primary figure behind the ill-fated decision for Cameron Bancroft to use a piece of yellow tape to try and alter the condition of the ball during the third Test.”

It has been learnt that senior fast bowlers Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood along with veteran spinner Nathan Lyon have all distanced themselves from skipper Smith for his comments that the ball tampering plan, on the third day of the third Test in Cape Town, was hatched by the leadership group.

Former Australia captain Steve Waugh today expressed his disappointment but urged everyone to have a balanced perspective about what he termed as an “error of judgement”.

“A focused and balanced perspective is needed in the condemnation on those involved in this, with a clear and critical consideration to the social impact and mental health of all players,” Waugh wrote on his official Facebook page, which was also uploaded by Cricket Australia.

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull added that authorities needed to crack down on sledging -- verbal abuse involving players on both sides -- if it wanted cricket to “once again (be) held up as a role model”.

“I think there has to be the strongest action taken against this practice of sledging,” he told reporters in Canberra. “It has got right out of control ... it should have no place (in cricket).”

Meanwhile former South African fast bowler Fanie De Villiers told Australian radio station RSN927 that he had tipped off the camera crew that caught Cameron Bancroft rubbing the ball with a piece of yellow tape which the batsman then tried to conceal.

“We actually said to our cameramen: ‘Go out. Have a look, boys. They are using something.’ It’s impossible for the ball to get altered like that on a cricket wicket where we knew there is a grass covering on. It’s not a Pakistani wicket where there are cracks every centimetre.

“I said earlier that if they could get reverse swing in the 26th, 27th, 28th over, then they are doing something different from what everyone else does.”

Former England captain Michael Vaughan, known to get under the skin of the Australians, claimed that they had tampered with ball during Ashes also.

“I can’t believe that this hasn’t happened before,” Vaughan told the BBC. “I look at the amount of tape some of the fielders have worn, particularly during the Ashes series, mid-on, mid-off. (You) don’t have to name names but they know who they are.

“I’m pretty sure that it was going on during the Ashes series. But it wasn’t the reason why England lost 4-0. They still would have lost that series.”

Source pages of article  - https://www.hindustantimes.com/cricket/steve-smith-david-warner-set-to-miss-india-series-ipl-2018-depends-on-noc-contents/story-iEf1vIPVMFWtWoVYPGhkmO.html 

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IPL 2018 Cricbuzz Team Predictions – Who will Win Vivo IPL 11?

IPL 2018 Cricbuzz Team Predictions – Who will Win Vivo IPL 11?

IPL 2018 Cricbuzz Yahoo, Delhi group of Cricket team Predictions

Who will win IPL 2018? With the eleventh edition of the Indian Premier League T20 competition just a few months away, we take a look at each team chances in the tournament. It is that time of the year when eight teams, will compete among each other to win the coveted Indian Premier League trophy as the tournament will enter its tenth phase this year. The mega-event, studded with celebrities and star players, from India and abroad, is expected to begin from April 7, 2018, and go on till the end of May. Here is a look at each club, we will look at which team is strong in IPL 2018, and let you know who we think will win the event.



The defending champions Mumbai Indians are looking to win another title, and they have built a very solid team for 2018. Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya return and with JP Duminy joining them, they look to have a nice batting platform. Kieron Pollard will contribute in a big way this season, and with Pat Cummins, Jasprit Bumrah and Mustafizur Rahman giving them a good bowling attack, the Indians should go close to winning once again.

Unless they are affected by player availability issues, the team should easily be able to make it into the business end of the season as one of the top four sides.

The Rajasthan Royals return with a decent squad, but they look to be lacking depth in their batting, and don’t have a number one bowling option. Their batting will depend a lot on Steve Smith and Ajinkya Rahane, if those two fail there is little else at the top of the order. In the middle they look good with Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Stuart Binny, but when it comes to bowling they don’t appear to have a number one. Bowling may come back to haunt the Royals, and if it does that will stop them from challenging this season.

The Indian Premier League 2018 season kicks off from April 7. Every team is undergoing rigorous preparation with the tournament starting in just three weeks time.

Every franchise assembled their troops from the auction held in Bengaluru in January 2018.

In this article, we rate the teams and their predicted position after the league games.

IPL 2018 Cricbuzz Team Predictions 

IPL 2017 in Numbers:

Orange Cap Holder - David Warner with 641 runs, the most by a batsman in IPL 2017 (Sunrisers Hyderabad).

Purple Cap Holder - Bhuvneshwar Kumar with 26 wickets, the most by a bowler in IPL 2017 (Sunrisers Hyderabad).

Most Sixes - Glenn Maxwell hitting 26 maximums in IPL 2017 (Kings XI Punjab)

Hattricks - Andrew Tye (Gujarat Lions), Jaydev Unadkat (Rising Pune Supergiants) and Samuel Badree (Royal Challengers Bangalore).

IPL 2018 will typify the comeback of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals in the arena of Indian Premier League, with all the players eligible for the mega auction, said Rajiv Shukla. Like every season, eight teams will play in the 11th season of IPL. In the tournament, each team will play twice with every other team on a round robin format. Four teams will reach the playoffs after the conclusion of the league matches.

However, it would be fascinating to see the auctions of IPL 2018. Potential shuffle of players among different teams would be an activity-packed part of the 11th season of IPL. BCCI has not yet released any official statement regarding the IPL 2018 Auctions. The auction pool in IPL 2018 will be like the very first season of IPL with none of the players retained and then the bedlam will begin when everyone will enter the auction pool of IPL 2018.

Moreover, new teams pair would be witnessed on the account of open auction. It would be interesting to see all the possibilities and might be that IPL 2018 would mark a phoenix to rise in its history, as there are so many players who have been playing for the same franchise since last 10 years.

Keep watching this space for IPL 2018 Schedule and Predictions.

Source article -https://www.sportzkidda.com/who-will-win-ipl-2018-prediction/

https://www.newsbytesapp.com/timeline/Sports/18163/88177/comparing-the-8-teams-of-ipl-2018

http://www.astrosage.com/2018/ipl/

IPL 2018, IPL 2018 Prediction, IPL 2018 Who Will Win, Who Will Win IPL 2018

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