Is It Too Hot To Play Cricket In India? Experts Say: "12 Per Cent Danger Of Heat Stroke"

NDTV

4 days ago

Even before the experts from British Association for Sustainability in Sport (BASIS) came up with the report- Hit For Six, The Danger Zone, former Australian legend Shane Warne spoke about it. He said on the impact of Climate Change on Cricket. "I think we all have to admit now that climate change is a huge issue. Before I'd seen the report I hadn't really thought about how it would impact the game of cricket. I was really taken aback. I'm more than happy to put my hand up. I have got three children - 22, 20 and just about to turn 18 - it's a different world for them. People want to put their head in the sand, and say I'm not going to be around in 50 years. That's just wrong."
A bunch of climate scientists and researchers, having analysed the IPL's 18th season or 2025 say that this year's matches were played under "Extreme Caution" or "Danger" on the Heat Index - a measure that combines air temperature and humidity to assess heat-related risk.
More than 36% of 2025 IPL games took place under "Extreme Caution" conditions, where heat exhaustion becomes a serious threat, with a further 12% reaching a "Danger" classification where the risk of heatstroke becomes significant.
Is it too hot to play cricket in India?
What are experts saying?
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The findings come from a report produced by the British Association for Sustainability in Sport (BASIS), Climate Central, Frontrunners and The Next Test.
A total of 65 IPL matches were assessed for the study. Scientists are saying that they are witnessing a clear trend towards more frequent and more intense heat conditions for key cricketing nations. Players are now being asked to perform in environments that are not just uncomfortable, but potentially dangerous, with rising temperatures and humidity levels pushing human physiology towards its upper limits. This isn't just about performance - it's increasingly a question of player safety.
The report charts a sharp rise in hazardous heat days at almost every major cricket stadium in India since 1970. In Mumbai, the number of these high-risk heat days has jumped by 125%, while Thiruvananthapuram recorded more than 100 hazardous heat days in 2024 alone. These are days when temperatures exceed safe limits for human health, dramatically increasing the risk of heat-related illness. And it is not just India, nations like Pakistan, Australia, and South Africa also seeing a significant surge in extreme heat days.
Several elite sports like Wimbledon, the Club World Cup have also been impacted.
When in comes to cricket, no major nation has been spared-
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the Caribbean and the UK are all facing a variety of climate extremes that are impacting the professional and grassroots game.
Cricket stars and cricketers of all generations tell Hit for Six: the danger zone of the impacts to the game they love.
Daren Ganga, former West Indies Captain (48 Tests) 'There is no doubt in my mind that today cricket faces its ultimate test. Forget concerns around different formats, TV deals or the battle for eyeballs in a multi-screen age. This challenge is an existential one and it comes in the form of a rapidly changing climate. I have played in blistering heat and vividly recall the nausea, the dizziness, the cramps that come with feelings of heatstroke. I have witnessed the disruption, despair and uncertainty sown by extreme and unpredictable weather. And things are only expected to deteriorate for the next generation of players, fans and clubs.'
Ashton Turner, Australia (28 Tests), Rajasthan Royals, Lucknow Super Giants, "We can't separate cricket from the places we play in - under open skies, on natural turf, in conditions that are changing faster than ever. As players, we've seen firsthand how weather extremes are already impacting the game. It's time cricket wakes up to the reality of climate change - not just for the future of our sport, but for the communities and countries we represent. We can't afford to sit on the sidelines."
2025 is set to be in the top 3 warmest years on record, says the UN's WMO weather agency, a phenomenon that scientists say is overwhelmingly due to the burning of three fossil fuels: coal, gas and oil.
The report takes into account the psychological and physiological responses from cricketers of all the major test playing nations.
The report says," Cricket is a game that requires its players to have a wide range of physical and psychomotor skills, including concentration, hand-eye coordination, agility, fast decision making, fast reaction times, sprinting and endurance. These technical skills, cognitive and physiological capabilities, must be maintained at the highest of levels over the course of often long periods. Many of these functions are adversely affected by the heat and high body temperatures. The implications for cricket matches being played in very hot conditions are many and varied."
This extreme heat threatens to affect the cricketers and fans. Perhaps time for policy makers to act on it.