2015 Cricket World Cup: Opening ceremony dominated by giant robot and awkward 360-degree videos

The Afghanistan Cricket team really like Vine

A giant puppet of a batsman waves a bat during the opening ceremony of the ICC 2015 Cricket World Cup (AFP)

The Cricket World Cup starts today, which may be news to some, given the event does not garner the same attention as, say, the football version.

Furthermore, with the event taking place in Australia and New Zealand, thus meaning England's opening game will take place in the UK at 3:30am, many may not have the tournament top of their priorities.

Organisers therefore had to make sure the opening ceremony captivated the disinterested and the ill-informed - and they did that with a giant mechanical robot and a weird 360-degree camera taking Vines of the cricket captains. Well, at least they both show a bit of technological advancement for an ancient sport.

Having said all that, one billion people are expected to tune into the event over the next few weeks.

Two ceremonies took place concurrently in Melbourne and Christchurch, with the biggest talking-point an 18-foot luminous batsman, called "The Player", that strode onto the stage with the help of a group of puppeteers.

Yet the weirdest novelty at the World Cup is definitely the "Vine Room", which places cricketers, politicians and fans in a small circular stage while a camera zooms around them, filming a short video that is then posted on the ICC's Twitter and Vine accounts.

Scotland's Kyle Coetzer says a hello to fans at home, while evidently finding the whole thing weird, awkwardly attempting to adjust his tie in a menacing manner:

Michael Clarke lead a number of the captains into the booth, with the Australian cricketer showcasing a mixture of confusion and childish glee:

Afghanistan, taking part in their first ever World Cup, were absolutely loving the wonders of this Vine machine:

The final takes place in 45 days' time in Melbourne, with the 14 starting teams whittled down to one winner.