Rishad’s bone-chilling ordeal shows grave side of Pakistan as he recalls the events that unfolded in the aftermath of suspension.
Rishad’s bone-chilling ordeal gives an account into the danger of player safety in the PSL.
In the face of growing border tensions between India and Pakistan, Bangladesh legspinner Rishad Hossain stated on Saturday that he and other international players were delighted to be in Dubai after a stressful few days at the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
Hours after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) suspended the Indian Premier League 2025 season (IPL) for a week, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) stated on May 9 that the T20 league will be postponed.
PSL players who were booked on connecting flights to their final destinations were flown out to the United Arab Emirates.
“Alhamdulillah, we have reached Dubai after overcoming a crisis and I am feeling well now,” Rishad told reporters at Dubai Airport.
“After landing in Dubai when we heard that a missile struck the airport 20 minutes after we took off from the airport. The news was scary as well as sorrowful and now after reaching Dubai we are feeling relieved,” he said, adding that his family spent some sleepless nights.
“Whenever I go out to play, my family worries for me whether the situation is good or not and now when they heard the news about Pakistan – the bomb-blasts and the missile-strikes here and there- -naturally they were in tension.
“I personally tried to console them and tell them not to worry about me and they were quite normal,” he added.
“Nahid Rana was very quiet, maybe for the tension, as I understood. I kept telling him not to be tense and hopefully nothing would happen to us. Alhamdulillah we reached Dubai safely,” said Rishad, adding that other foreign players were also shaken up by the ongoing crisis near the border.
“Foreign players like Sam Billings, Daryl Mitchell, Kushal Perera, David Wiese, Tom Curran… all of them were so frightened… Landing in Dubai, Mitchell told me that he would never go to Pakistan again, especially in this kind of scenario. Overall, they all were horrified,” said Rishad.
Recounting Tom Curran’s plight, Rishad added: “He (Tom Curran) went to the airport, but heard that the airport was closed. Then he started crying like a little child, that it took two or three people to handle him,” he added.
The PCB chairman had originally intended to conduct the remaining PSL matches in Karachi, but Rishad added that the plan was altered when players brought up safety concerns with Mohsin Naqvi.
“Yes, the PCB Chairman tried to convince us to conduct the remaining matches in Karachi. At that time he tried to hide from us that there were two drone attacks just the day before which we came to know later. Later all of us took the decision (to shift to Dubai) and the PCB Chairman helped us a lot to reach Dubai safely by the grace of Almighty Allah. Thanks to him and the Pakistan Cricket Board,” he concluded.