Surprise quickly turned into laughter as New Zealand cricketers realised the major blunder occurring ahead of their Super 8 match against England in the ongoing T20 World Cup in Colombo on Friday night. A sped-up version of New Zealand’s national anthem, God Defend New Zealand, was played while the players tried to keep up, resulting in hilarious scenes as Kyle Jamieson, Finn Allen, James Neesham, and others burst out laughing.
Thanks to the glitch, the players struggled to maintain a straight face, with Neesham breaking down as soon as the camera panned past him. The situation worsened as the anthem continued to play at the wrong speed, with cameras capturing New Zealand’s backroom staff looking equally amused.
This is not the first time an ICC event has experienced such a mishap. During a group-stage clash of the 2025 Champions Trophy in Lahore, the Indian national anthem was mistakenly played for a moment instead of Pakistan’s, prompting the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to seek an explanation from the ICC.
At the 2025 Asia Cup in Dubai, a Bollywood song was inadvertently played in place of Pakistan’s national anthem ahead of their match against India.
Meanwhile, it was a not-so-happy result for New Zealand though, as they allowed England to secure a thrilling four-wicket win, which means they must now await the result of Saturday night’s clash between Sri Lanka and Pakistan to learn of their fate.
A win would have given them the ticket to the semi-finals but Pakistan now have an opportunity to pip them on net run-rate to advance.
If Pakistan bat first, they need to win by 65 runs, and if they chase, they need to complete the target in 13.1 overs to overtake New Zealand.
