The best and worst moments of the PSL opening ceremony

Sean Paul's 'halal' performance was clearly the winning act of the night!

Pakistan Super League’s opening ceremony was a spectacular affair, with some of the cricket and entertainment industry’s finest setting the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on fire.

From sports stars bringing their A-game, and celebrities putting their best foot forward to Sean Paul’s thrilling performance, the star-studded night set the ball rolling for the Twenty20 extravaganza.

Like any other major event, the PSL debut night had it’s share of highs and lows. In case you missed it (or even if you didn't), we bring to you some highlights of the event that made it to our list of the best and worst moments:

National Anthem

People across the globe will agree that their respective national anthems evoke a sense of patriotism in them as soon as it’s played. That is what the audience present at the stadium experienced as soon as the ceremony commenced with Pakistan's National Anthem -- it struck a cord and kindled a spirit of pride.

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Sanam and Mohib set the tone

The Bachaana duo kicked-off the grand night with a power-packed performance. The two actors set the bar high and made us excited for performances ahead.




Drum roll by the Green Man Group

Given that this was Pakistan’s first super league, the band should've taken it up a notch or two; a high school band could have done a better job. Seriously, what was that?


Yasir Hussain's hosting fail 

Yasir failed to live up to his own standards which he set while hosting the Lux Style Awards last year. Reading the script from cue cards on live TV is a big 'NO!'; especially when one is good with impromptu acts.

No matter how much she likes Imran Khan and Shahid Afridi, Miss Sri Lanka 2011 Stephanie Siriwardana, will think twice before returning as a host for the PSL.

Not only she was clueless about her script, her excitement wasn’t received warmly by anyone except for her co-host Yasir. But she didn’t seem impressed with his cheeky advances either … (thankfully).





Dead Men Walking or teams entering the field?

Where was the jazbaa? Where was the junoon? The men of hour seemed to have left their enthusiasm in the locker rooms. The cricketers’ energy – or lack thereof --  didn't reflect their social media excitement at all. We sincerely missed Afridi’s 100-watt smile.



Almost all regional teams were missing the passion, zeal and anticipation as they entered the stadium ground looking rather somber.



But… Lahore Lahore Hai

Lahoris, however, showed what they mean when they say ‘Lahore Lahore Hai’. The Qalandars were on a roll and clearly stood out among other teams as the players grooved onto the field. Now that’s how you slay.


Celebrity spotting

Team ambassadors flew down to Dubai to support their favourites. From Fawad Khan and Hamza Ali Abbasi to Ayesha Omar and Humaima Malick, the stars looked happy to be at the ceremony.

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Najam Sethi being Najam Sethi

PCB executive committee chairman tried to keep it light-hearted  as he said, "I promise to bring at least one or two matches in Pakistan in the next edition. And in the third year, we will come to Pakistan completely.” We hope, sir! We really do hope.

But he did win hearts when he said, “In PSL, whether [your] team wins or loses, in the end Pakistan will win.” Pakistan Zindabad!



 

The arrival of shooting star 

We were praying for no mishaps the entire time, and thankfully it was smooth sailing (pun intended).





Sean Paul’s first halal performance

Sean Paul performing with fully-clad dancers and boys for a change! Can we call it a halal performance?



No wonder Misbah-ul-Haq and Kamran Akmal looked unamused.





Nonetheless, Wasim Akram loved it, and Chris Gayle didn’t mind shaking a leg either.


Over all, his performance was clearly the winner of the night!

But wait… wasn’t he supposed to perform with Ali Zafar?

Our very own rockstar indeed performed, but, unfortunately, it was a solo act! Too much hype for nothing!

Ali took the stage with his cliché and predictable acts, and we were far from impressed. He performed Rockstar of Coke Studio fame and Masti Ke Din.

However, his official anthem for PSL, Ab Khel Ke Dikha and the fireworks that followed, won us over and the night could not have ended in better fashion.


Overall, we commend everyone for putting up a great show and making us proud Pakistanis. We hope to see a bigger and better version in the years to come.