A COMMENTATOR was left “frightened” after a huge snake caused a Sri Lankan cricket match to come to a halt.
The Lanka Premier League match between Galle Titans and Dambulla Aura had to be halted after the snake slithered onto the field.
Twitter / @LPLT20The huge snake slithered onto the field to stop play[/caption]
Twitter / @LPLT20The LPL Umpire was able to frighten the snake away from the field by stomping his feet behind it[/caption]
Twitter / @LPLT20He was then able to herd the snake over the boundary[/caption]
The players managed to see the funny side of the scary interaction, with a Galle Titans player gesturing to the umpire to stop play after seeing the reptile.
The Dambulla Aura batsman then joked with the bowler and fielders as the stewards and umpire attempted to move the snake.
While the exact species of snake was unclear, many suggested that it was a common rat snake.
Rat snakes pose a powerful bite but are non-venomous and are usually spotted where small rodents are present.
The commentator in the footage shared by Sri Lanka Cricket on Twitter said: “Oh gosh, look at that… that frightens me. I just don’t want to be anywhere close,”
“What a sight. Never seen anything like this on a cricket field. I think we’ve got to wait for him to just exit.”
An umpire attempted to remove the snake by stomping on the ground behind it before managing to field it over the boundary by walking behind it.
A local wildlife team were then called to safely remove the rat snake.
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The Lanka Premier League (LPL) then shared the footage on their Twitter page with the caption: “Hello, stranger. Where is your accreditation card?
“Even the local wildlife can’t resist the action at the LPL!”
Stunned cricket fans replied to the tweet, with one saying: “The occasional entries of dogs and cats is normal, but when a snake makes its presence in the field, this is utterly dangerous for everyone.”
Another fan replied: “I was just trying to enjoy the game.”
After the snake induced stoppage the Titans won a thriller in a super over after both sides scored 180 runs from their 20 overs.