March 15, 2019 is a day many Kiwis won’t ever forget. The Bangladesh cricket team won’t either, as they narrowly avoided tragedy at Al Noor Mosque.
Back in New Zealand two years on, captain Tamim Iqbal, struggles to find the words to recount what happened.
“We were just not even 50 yards from where he shooting was happening so we remember everything,” he said.
"We as human beings suffered a lot and it took us a long time to get out of it because we were so, so close,” said Iqbal.
Fifty-one people were killed when a gunman opened fire on worshippers at Christchurch's Al Noor and Linwood mosques on March 15, 2019.
The team had planned to go to Friday prayers that afternoon, however were running slightly late due to a one-on-one football game going longer than expected.
The team bus arrived at Al Noor mosque as the gunman opened fire.
They had to duck for cover in their bus, before being escorted by police back through Hagley Park.
They were due to play the Black Caps the following day, instead the tour was cancelled and they returned home.
Two years on though, they’re happy to be back.
“New Zealand has much more to offer than that sad part you know,” said Iqbal.
“New Zealand is a beautiful country with beautiful, very nice people and we have much more better memories than one bad incident,” he said.
He also acknowledged that it ‘could have happened anywhere’, and that the team's thoughts remain with the victims and their families.
Iqbal, now on his fifth cricket tour to New Zealand, hopes his side can capitalise on their resilience, with a first up win against the Black Caps on Saturday.
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