The Daily Star
People pour onto the streets surrounding the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka on Thursday as they wait impatiently for the opening of the the biggest show of cricket.
Who dares to say cricket is not the No. 1 game in Bangladesh? At least now? No-one. Wait a minute, who dares to raise the question?
The electrifying gush of love for the game, the excitement and the colour in the air connect the souls scattered over about 57,000 square miles. The whole nation has risen to the occasion, the biggest cricket show. The dream has now come true.
What a wait! As if people were holding their breath and are now going to exhale with the raising of the curtain of the gala.
And which is hosting the opening? No less than Bangbandhu National Stadium, a name the Bangladeshis would utter with utmost passion because this was once the soul of Bangladesh’s sports in general, especially of cricket.
“It gave not only Bangladesh, but also Pakistan, their Test debuts, in 1955 and in 2000. It staged successfully the Champions Trophy in 1998-99,” Sidharth Monga writes on ESPNcricinfo.
Situated in the heart of Dhaka, the capital, the BNS has seen long debates on whether it should solely host football or share the time with cricket before finally been reserved for football and athletics. Cricket, what is becoming a passion ingrained in the people of the delta, found Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur as its home.
Little more than a decade after its admission to cricket's top table, Bangladesh is jointly hosting the sport's biggest event with neighbours India and Sri Lanka. The achievement, according to many of the country, is something to become proud of. Yes, the occasion is finally at the doors!
Go out to the streets in any city or even villages, you can simply feel it. Needless to mention about the capital or Chittagong, the port city which is hosting two matches, the whole country has, as if, painted itself in the colour of cricket. The outward décor, the illumination at the stadiums and on the streets fails to accommodate the lion part of people’s feelings you bet.
“This means the world to the people, to put it simply,” Saber Hossain Chowdhury, the ruling party lawmaker who was at the helm of the Bangladesh Cricket Board when Tigers won the ICC Trophy in 1997, told ESPNcricinfo.
“This is the best dream, this event is what every citizen of this country has been waiting for. Cricket brings the country together,” he feels.
The magnificent show is going to begin at 5:50pm local time at the new-look BNS after a 55-minute pre-show that will begin at 4:55pm. Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh’s prime minister, is expected to inaugurate the gala.
Divided into five parts, the opening ceremony has in the first part beautifully decorated rickshaws, named “Lead”, which will carry 14 skippers of the nations taking part in the tournament. It will be followed by members of their 14 teams joining the march past.
The gala programme kicks off with singer Abrar Tipu entering the stadium on a superbly decorated car and singing a welcome song: "O Prithibi, Ebar eshey Banglake nao chiney” (Hey world, now is the time to know Bangladesh).
This will be followed by the official theme song “De Ghumma Ke” to be sung in four languages. Bollywood's famous team of music directors Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani, Loy have composed the song. The term literally means “Hit It Hard” and it is one word used by all the cricket fanatics for their favorite player and team. The song has Bengali, Hindi and Sinhalese versions.
World renowned Canadian rock star Bryan Adams, India's Sonu Nigam, and Bangladesh’s Sabina Yasmin, Runa Laila and Mumtaz are expected to enthrall the crowd with their mesmerising numbers.
India's celebrated event 'Symphony of Colours' and Sri Lanka's celebrated event 'The Pearl of Indian Ocean' will be performed for 20 minutes.
Then a dance programme directed by Shamim Ara Nipa and Shibly Mohamnmad will be performed for 20 minutes.
A cultural programme depicting the glorious Language Movement, War of Liberation, Bangabandhu's historic March 7 speech, Bangla New Year, cultural dance of Chakma, Rakhine, Marma, Shautal and Garo tribes will be presented by 2,100 school and college students and 350 members of the Armed Forces. This programme is choreographed by famous Indian Santosh Sethji.
Then a 60-foot dais will roll into the stadium with Sabina Yasmin, Runa Laila and Mumtaz singing a song. They will sing for nine minutes in medley style.
The opening function will be rounded off with an eye- catching firework brought in from China
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