IPL 2019 starts without opening ceremony, BCCI donates Rs 20 crore to Armed Forces, CRPF

The Indian Premier League has kicked off in style once again but only this time around it is without the glamourous opening ceremony. The gesture comes as a mark of respect to the armed forces who lost their lives in the Pulwama attack. Instead, the BCCI has donated Rs 20 crore, the money which was allocated for the ceremony has been donated to the Armed Forces as well as the CRPF for their fearless service to the nation. 

The decision to donate the money was made by the Committee of Administrators of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) after 40 CRPF personnel were killed in the attack. Chennai Super Kings, who are playing against the Royal Challengers Bangalore team, also donated Rs 2 crore to the CRPF, the money for which came from their ticket sales of the first match day. The cheque was presented by team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni before the start of the match, which also saw a performance by the military band, on the opening day of the biggest cricket league in the world. 

IPL 2019 is the 12th edition of the cricket league which started on Saturday in Chennai at Chepauk stadium, the home ground of CSK, who also happen to be the winners of IPL 2018. The month-long cricket league this year has started early because of the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup.