Mitchell Starc’s wife, Alyssa Healy, shared what it was like during the canceled IPL 2025 match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals. She said it felt unreal and that she was both anxious and scared.
The match, held at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala, was stopped because of rising tensions between India and Pakistan. A situation similar to war caused panic at the venue.
After 10.1 overs of Punjab Kings’ innings, the stadium lights suddenly went out, and fans were asked to leave the stands. This happened because Pakistan had launched an attack in the Pathankot area, which is about 80 km from the stadium.
The players of Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings, along with their support staff, were quickly taken back to their hotels after the match was called off. Since flights were suspended, a special train was arranged to take both teams to Delhi.
Alyssa Healy Describes ‘Surreal’ Experience During Sudden Stadium Evacuation
Alyssa Healy, who was in the stands supporting her husband Mitchell Starc, shared how the situation unfolded. She described the moment when someone came up to them looking extremely worried. Speaking on The Willow Talk Podcast, she said:
“It was a surreal experience. All of a sudden a couple of the light towers went out and we were just sitting there up the top waiting… we’re a large group of family and extra support staff and the next minute the guy who wrangles the group of us and gets us on the bus came up and his face was white,” Alyssa Healy said.
“He was like, ‘we need to go right now’. Then another guy came out and his face was white and he grabbed one of the children and said, ‘we need to leave right now’. We were like, ‘what’s going on?’ We weren’t told anything. We had no idea. Next minute we are being shuffled into this room which was like a holding pen. All the boys were in there.”
Missile Strike Near Stadium: Starc Informs Healy of Nearby Attack
Alyssa Healy shared how intense and chaotic the situation was during the cancelled IPL match. Alyssa Healy mentioned that things were so rushed and unexpected that even Faf du Plessis didn’t have shoes on. She recalled asking her husband Mitchell Starc what was happening, and he told her about the missile strike nearby. Describing the whole experience as madness, she said:
“Faf du Plessis didn’t even have shoes on. We were all just waiting there, looking stressed. I said to Mitch, ‘what’s going on?’ He said the town 60km away had just been smacked by some of the missiles so there was a complete blackout in the area. That’s why the lights were off because the Dharamsala stadium was like a beacon at that point in time. All of a sudden we’re crammed into vans and off we go back to the hotel. There was madness.”
“We ended up going southwest towards the (Pakistan) border, which was a little bit terrifying. Mitch and I have played too much Call of Duty and we’re noticing all surface-to-missile sites that were just sitting there ready to go. They’re radar-operated systems that shoot missiles at aircraft. We saw a few of them on the way through in some small towns. Some peanut down in the village decides it’s a great idea to set off some fireworks in the middle of the day.”
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