The International Council of Cricket was at the receiving end of online criticism on Wednesday afternoon after it released its much-awaited World Cup anthem ahead of the quadrennial tournament scheduled to take place in India starting this October.
A raft of social media users took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to haul ICC over the coals for the anthem, claiming that it was a big disappointment for everything that the tournament represents.
The anthem, titled ‘Dil Jashn Bole,’ features Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh in the lead role. Pritam, a highly accomplished music composer, has crafted the music for this anthem. Additionally, the anthem showcases the choreography of Dhanashree Verma, who is married to Yuzvendra Chahal, the renowned India leg-spinner. In the three-minute and 22-second-long anthem, viewers embark on a visual voyage across India aboard the ‘One Day Express.’
But the anthem failed to dazzle X users, who were particularly critical in roasting the ICC for releasing a song that failed to strike a chord with the audiences like earlier ones had done, primarily the one released before the 2011 World Cup.
A social media user deemed the World Cup anthem a “Monumental disaster” and expressed disappointment at the song released by the ICC.
Another user appeared bewildered as to what ICC had created in the name of the World Cup anthem.
Ajeet Bharti, a popular political analyst and commentator, was so disappointed with the new anthem that he remarked that it would have been better if ICC had not released the song altogether if it had to come up with something like this.
Another popular X user, @theskindoctor, who is known for his sarcastic jibes, took a dig at the ICC in his characteristic manner, asking ICC to not release “masterpieces of such magnitude for the public as it diminishes their exclusivity and sanctity.”
The World Cup commences with defending champion England facing off against New Zealand, the last edition’s runner-up, at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. India will embark on their World Cup campaign against the five-time winners Australia on October 8 at the Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. In this year’s event, a total of 10 teams are participating. Each team will compete against all others, and the top four teams will progress to the semi-finals.