Papon Opens India vs Sri Lanka Women’s World Cup In Guwahati With Emotional Tribute To Late Zubeen Garg | Watch

ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 starts today at Guwahati’s Barsapara stadium with the first game between India and Sri Lanka. Papon and Shreya Ghoshal performed at the opening ceremony. While melody queen sings a stirring rendition of the national anthem, Papon paid an emotional tribute to the late Zubeen Garg by performing his song.

Papon sang late Zubeen Garg’s song Maya at the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 opener

On September 30, Papon, whose real name is Angarag Mahanta, gave a heartfelt honour to his close friend with a performance before the India-Sri Lanka match.

He sang Maya, one of the most loved Assamese songs of Zubeen Garg, while fans chanted “Joi Zubeen Da” as emotions filled the stadium, which is one of the four Indian venues chosen to host the 13th ICC Women’s World Cup.

Papon had earlier attended Garg’s last rites and later cancelled his scheduled shows and professional commitments.

Assamese musician Garg, who rose to mainstream fame with Bollywood hits like Ya Ali and Subah Subah, passed away at the age of 52 on September 19 in Singapore. Four days later, he was cremated with full state honours in Kamarkuchi village, Sonapur, about 30 km east of Guwahati, where hundreds of thousands gathered to bid farewell to one of Assam’s most beloved cultural icons.

About the match, Sri Lanka won the toss, and skipper Chamari Athapaththu chose to field. The Women in Blue began their campaign on a shaky note after losing in-form opener Smriti Mandhana early in the innings. Mandhana, who had scored two centuries in an ODI series against defending champions Australia ahead of the World Cup, fell for 8 when Udeshika Prabodhani struck in the fourth over.

The ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2025 will take place from 30 September to 2 November at DY Patil Stadium (Navi Mumbai), ACA Stadium (Guwahati), Holkar Stadium (Indore), ACA-VDCA Stadium (Visakhapatnam), and R Premadasa Stadium (Colombo, Sri Lanka).

Also Read: Advance Box Office Day 1: Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari's ₹60 Lac Vs Kantara Chapter 1's ₹6 Crore; Rishab Shetty Starrer To Emerge As Clear Winner In Dussehra Clash