Snake Interrupts High-Stakes Cricket as Sri Lanka Faces Bangladesh
Most cricket matches see interruptions for rain, player injuries, or maybe even an occasional stray dog, but fans at R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo got something quite unexpected on July 3, 2025—a 7-foot snake slithering across the outfield right in the thick of an ODI between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. With the crowd settling in for what should have been a routine third over in Bangladesh's run chase, all eyes shifted from the players to the boundary where the remarkable guest appeared.
This wasn’t a fleeting distraction. Just as Asitha Fernando was gearing up for his fourth delivery, alert eyes spotted movement near the point boundary. Within seconds, players started signaling toward the perimeter. Umpires and ground staff reacted fast, enlisting security personnel to carefully trap and remove the unexpected visitor. The entire process took only a few minutes, but the tension (and a fair bit of laughter among fans) hung in the air while everyone awaited the restart.
For those watching—and for social media users who pounced on the incident—it quickly became part of cricket folklore. Memes and clips filled timelines, with witty fans dubbing the showdown the 'Naagin Derby,' poking fun at both teams’ competitive history and the now-infamous reptilian interruption. The term “Naagin” isn’t new to these teams: it’s been a playful jab among supporters for years, but seeing an actual snake join the match definitely took the joke to another level.
Sri Lanka Claims Victory as Bangladesh Falters
Once the field was clear and the adrenaline rush faded, focus returned to the cricket. Bangladesh appeared solid at the start of their chase. Yet, the interruption coincided with a notable turning point. Going strong at 100 for 1, Bangladesh’s lineup unraveled shockingly fast, folding for just 167 after losing their last nine wickets cheaply. The Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh ODI, which started as a close contest, ended up with Sri Lanka taking a comfortable victory and a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
While Sri Lankan grounds aren’t strangers to encounters with wildlife—ranging from monkeys to, on rare occasions, elephants—the sight of a massive snake weaving its way across the field is still enough to stop play and get everyone’s heart racing. There were no injuries, just a story that every player and fan in the stadium will remember for a long time.
The buzz since the match hasn’t died down. People keep swapping snake stories, mixing in analysis of Sri Lanka’s clinical win over a struggling Bangladeshi batting order, but always circling back to the bizarre moment that shifted the stadium’s attention from bat and ball to scales and slither. It’s not every day cricket and wildlife collide center stage—yet, for a few unforgettable minutes in Colombo, that’s exactly what happened.
