Cup launched with colourful ceremony
CHRISTCHURCH: Children mingled with cricketing greats in “backyard” matches and Maori warriors shared the stage with morris dancers as the Cricket World Cup opened yesterday with a vibrant and quirky ceremony in Christchurch.
Thousands of fans crammed leafy Hagley Park to see the launch of the first World Cup in New Zealand and Australia in 23 years, the formal part of which began with a lone bagpiper and ended with a booming fireworks display — the biggest in the city’s history.
The World Cup is the largest event Christchurch has hosted since an earthquake in February 2011 devastated the city’s centre — only a few hundred yards from where yesterday’s festivities took place, claiming the lives of 185 people.
The physical scars of that disaster still remain in the many vacant lots where buildings once stood but the people of Christchurch showed yesterday the city’s spirit remains undimmed.
Mayor Leanne Dalziell said Christchurch was preparing to host the 2011 Rugby World Cup when the earthquake struck, toppling hotels and wrecking venues, forcing matches to be allocated to other centres. She told fans yesterday “we’re back!” The captains of the teams currently in New Zealand were presented to the crowd.
South Africa captain AB de Villiers told fans that while the Proteas had never won the World Cup “we’re as well prepared as we can be and we look forward to taking the trophy home.”
Zimbabwe captain Hamilton Masakadza, whose team plays South Africa in its opening match on Sunday, said while the odds were against his team “the good thing about this tournament is the team that plays the best cricket on the day will win the match.”
Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews said his team’s opening match against New Zealand tomorrow is “going to be a tough contest, it’s going to be an even contest and whoever plays the best cricket will win.”
New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum, who lives in Christchurch said “having the first game of the World Cup here in Christchurch after all it’s been through is fantastic.”
“I think it’s a wide open World Cup,” he said. “The nature of wickets we’ll see in Australia and New Zealand are pure wickets and that brings in the match-winners. Every team has match-winners and they can turn the game in 10 or 15 overs.”