While interruptions are common in cricket, it’s rare when wildlife takes centre stage. At Centurion, flying ants took full advantage of the open field and made their presence felt during South Africa’s chase as the on-field umpires were forced to halt play, giving the insects a brief moment of fame.
India had a remarkable outing with the bat, propelled by Tilak Varma’s dazzling century. The left-hander was in superb form, playing a range of impressive shots to guide India to a formidable total of 219/6. Alongside him, Abhishek Sharma’s blistering half-century provided further impetus. However, South Africa’s chase was unexpectedly interrupted by a swarm of flying ants, which took over the ground and halted play.
After a solid first over from Arshdeep Singh, the insects began to cause problems for the players. Reeza Hendricks, in particular, struggled to keep his focus as the ants swarmed around his face, disturbing his concentration. The umpires soon noticed the growing disturbance with the entire ground covered in the insects. After consulting with the players, including India’s captain Suryakumar Yadav, and South African batters Hendricks and Ryan Rickelton, the umpires decided to stop play. The groundsmen quickly got to work using the super sopper to clear the pitch and surrounding areas of the insects. The unusual interruption sparked a flurry of activity on social media, with Twitter users discussing the bizarre scene and sharing their amusement at the uninvited guests taking over the field.
Wow! this is something unique now!
That’s a first. Flying ants stops play. #SAvIND #ProteaFire pic.twitter.com/TeYBqAjOl8
— Recovered X (@Burgerboxxx) November 13, 2024
First time I’ve seen play stopped because of flying ants #INDvSA #Cricket pic.twitter.com/XFFN2KgVwm
— The Drunken Copywriter (@G_S_Meredith) November 13, 2024
How did they appear outta no where!
yeah yeah!
play stopped due to flying ants swarming around the ground in large numbers#SAvsIND #INDvSA #INDvsSA pic.twitter.com/KLV53arshL
— A & K🇮🇳 (@badjocker1020) November 13, 2024
The flying ants! #SAvsIND pic.twitter.com/fE6nPjIg77
— Asif Khan (@_asif) November 13, 2024
Us bruh us!
Yeah!
Flying Ants Stop Play 🤦🏾 #SAvIND
— Amit Patel (@Pateliii2) November 13, 2024
👀 on Flying ants #SAvIND @SuperSportPark
— JaayShaan (VaidhyaJayaShankar) (@JaayShaan) November 13, 2024
Yes yes!!!
