On May 8, during the IPL 2025 match between Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Delhi Capitals (DC) in Dharamshala, play came to a sudden stop after 10 overs. The headlights went out due to a nationwide emergency power outage.
It was related to Operation Sindoor, India’s military response to the Pahalgam terror attack and cross-border aggression from Pakistan. PBKS were 122/1 when the lights started going out one by one.
Read also | Operation Sindoor: Over 100 Pakistani soldiers killed, says Lt Gen Ghai DGMO
Local authorities soon ordered evacuations after warnings of airstrikes in Jammu and Pathankot. Over 20,000 spectators and players were safely evacuated within 30 minutes.
Now, PBKS player Shashank Singh has revealed what exactly happened in the basement.
“Shreyas went to bat and suddenly one floodlight went off, then four, five, six more. We were like, ‘Why are the lights going out?’ They announced a strategic timeout. The umpires came in and said it was a technical foul,” Singh told Lallantop Sports.
Read also | PM Modi’s Asia Cup post draws Cong criticism for mention of Operation Sindoor
“Then all of a sudden our security liaison officer said, ‘Everybody, go inside’. We were sitting in the basement and then we went to the locker room. From there we were told to go to the basement,” the PBKS player said.
The players were aware of the border problems before the game. Still, Shashank Singh recalled how rumors spread quickly during the Dharamshala blackout. “People said there was an explosion,” he said.
According to Shashank Singh, foreign players were scared during the blackout.
Read also | After Suryakumar Yadav, Pakistan captain wants to donate Asia Cup match fees
“We grew up with riots and border tensions, but this was new to them,” he said.
Foreign players Faf du Plessis, Jake Fraser-McGurk and Mitchell Starc were part of Delhi in this match.
Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen and Josh Inglis were part of Punjab in this match.
Panic spread as everyone was told to board any available bus. Even Mitchell Starc of the Capitals ended up on their bus. The sudden chaos visibly shook everyone.
“It was scary,” Singh said.
Preity Zinta took the lead
After the power cut incident, Punjab owner Preity Zinta brought both the squads together and calmed them down. She explained that the Indian Army is fully under control and there is no real danger. However, it was unwise to play near a tense border.
“Country is ahead of cricket. There was so much going on at the borders. It doesn’t make sense to play IPL,” she told players from both teams.
She asked everyone to return home. Management quickly arranged trains, hotels, food and travel for all players, including international ones. Despite airspace and road restrictions, it was a smooth process.
The next morning they took a 6 hour train from Jalandhar to Delhi. Shashank Singh praised Preity Zinta and the organizers and said that everything was smooth and safe even under such tense circumstances.
