IND vs SA: Dharamsala hosts first cricket match since IPL 2025 blackout amid Operation Sindoor

The Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamsala hosted its first cricket match in over seven months since the Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Delhi Capitals (DC) Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 match was called off amid a blackout.

The picturesque stadium by the Himalayas served as the venue for the third T20 International between India and South Africa, which took place on Sunday.

Earlier this year, on May 8, a league-stage IPL game between the Kings and the Capitals ended in a mid-match evacuation following reports of drone incursions within a 100-kilometre radius.

Punjab was off to a flying start, with its openers putting on a 122-run stand in just 56 deliveries. But just after the first wicket fell, things took a drastic turn as the floodlights began to go out one after another.

Word began to spread across social media of drone attacks in Jammu, Udhampur, and Pathankot — all less than 85 kilometres from the stadium.

With military escalation in the region, uncertainty loomed over whether the match would proceed. However, it was decided earlier in the day that the game would go ahead as planned.

Tensions had already been simmering in the background following India’s retaliatory strikes on nine terror camps across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The strikes came after weeks of escalating tensions between the neighbours over the terrorist attacks in the picturesque town of Pahalgam in Kashmir on April 22, which left 26 people dead.

IPL chairman Arun Dhumal, present at the venue, was seen assisting officials and spectators in vacating the premises, stepping in during a situation the tournament had never faced before. External security personnel and stadium officials coordinated well, ushering spectators out in a calm and controlled manner.

The players were also promptly escorted out before the formal announcement that the match had been abandoned.

Published on Dec 14, 2025