Cuttack: The historic Barabati Stadium in Cuttack witnessed a spectacular start to the Odisha Pro T20 League (OPTL) 2025 with a grand opening ceremony on Wednesday evening.
The event was graced by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, who unveiled the league trophy and officially marked the beginning of the inaugural edition of the league. “This is not just a league, it is a celebration of cricketing excellence. I want to thank the OCA office bearers, Secretary Sanjay Behera and Dr Asirbad Behera, under whose efforts many international matches and tournaments have been brought to the Barabati Stadium. I also extend my gratitude to the players, stakeholders and spectators for making this tournament possible. To make this league even bigger, I warmly welcome Irfan Pathan as the League Brand Ambassador. His involvement will certainly help cricket and this league grow further. I hereby declare the tournament open,” the CM said.
Following the unveiling of the trophy, Majhi spun the coin for the first match of OPTL 2025, where Swastik Samal, Captain of Cuttack Panthers, won the toss and elected to bowl first against Bhubaneswar Tigers.
Just before the first ball of the match was bowled, the traditional Bell Ringing Ceremony was observed. The Chief Minister rang the bell in the presence of OCA secretary Sanjay Behera, Twin City Commissioner of Police S Dev Datta Singh, Cuttack-Choudwar MLA Souvic Biswal, Cuttack-Sadar MLA Prakash Chandra Sethi, and Dr. Sudhanshu Sarangi, Director General of Odisha Fire & Emergency Services, marking the official commencement of the league and its inaugural match.
The grand ceremony featured a vibrant line-up of performances by Ruturaj Mohanty, Rapper Pratik, Sambalpuri folk dance, Malkhamb dance, Nakash Aziz, and a special dance act by Chitrangada Singh, making it a truly memorable evening.
On the occasion, the OCA announced a contribution of Rs 5 lakh to Adruta Children Homes, marking the 75th birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
