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‘The venue has been compromised...': Matthew Hayden recalls scary night IPL was suspended due to IND-PAK conflict
Former Australian cricketer and commentator Matthew Hayden has shared his scary experience from the night the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season was suspended midway due to safety concerns during an India-Pakistan conflict.
Speaking on the All Over Bar The Cricket podcast, Hayden revealed that the incident happened when he was travelling from Mumbai to Delhi, and then had to drive 11-12 hours to Dharamsala for the match. It was for the match between the Punjab Kings and the Delhi Capitals.
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By the time Hayden and others reached the venue, they were told the game would go on. But the lights at the stadium started to go off soon after and the match was abandoned with everyone evacuated quickly.
'I'd flown from Mumbai overnight to Delhi because there wasn't a connecting flight with Punjab's home ground (for that game) Dharamsala. Magnificent ground. But by the time I landed in Delhi, there was no airport open,' Hayden said.
'It was at the time that coincided with the incursion of Pakistan back into India and we were talking drones navigating across the skies, taking out ground to air missiles and it was just eerie. We had to take a car via Chandigarh up to Dharamsala. That's a 11 and a half, 12 hour drive. By the time we reached the venue we were told the game was about to proceed,' he added.
Hayden reveals what happened on the scary night
Things took a strange turn when the stadium lights started going off during the game. While viewers were initially told it was a technical issue, Hayden admitted that the commentators were warned in advance.
'But half an hour before we went on air we were given a security message that if the light towers were to to go out, it's not a technical issue. It's actually a sign that the venue has been compromised and there will be an emergency evacuation response and we will proceed,' he said.
'I was mid-sentence with my usual garbage on air and the first light tower goes out so I've let the spectators and fans know that it has gone out. Then the second goes almost immediately. Next minute security came in like a blanket. Dropped my mic literally mid-sentence and we were ushered out of the ground,' he added.
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A day after the incident, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) officially suspended the IPL for a week. Once tensions between India and Pakistan eased and both sides agreed to a ceasefire, the BCCI confirmed the league would resume with a revised schedule featuring selected venues.
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