IPL 2022 kicked off in Mumbai on a sad note, with the tournament paying respect to legendary Australian cricketer Shane Warne, who died suddenly on March 3 in Thailand.
After the National Anthem was sung, a homage to Warne was played on the big screen at the Wankhede stadium just before the Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders came out to play the opening match of the season.
A portrait of Warne in the Rajasthan Royals jersey was displayed on the giant screen at the stadium with the pink colour, associated with RR, in the background.
Warne led the under-rated Rajasthan Royals to the inaugural IPL title in 2008, till date the team's only IPL trophy.