The timed-out dismissal of veteran Sri Lanka all-rounder Angelo Mathews caught every headline recently. The moment happened when Sri Lanka took on Bangladesh in the 38th game of the ongoing ODI World Cup 2023, and batting first, the incident happened when Mathews took strike in the middle order.
As he prepared to face the bowler, the chin strap of his helmet broke, which caused even more time wastage before he was ready to face the ball. As the Bangladesh skipper appealed to the umpire, Mathews became the victim of the first ever timed-out dismissal in international cricket.
However, a new report by ESPNcricinfo suggested that the umpires informed Mathews beforehand how much time he had left to face a delivery. The veteran was told by Richard Illingworth that he had 30 seconds left to face the ball before he could have been subjected to a time out.
However, after the game, Mathews came forward to state that the match officials could have used “common sense” before dismissing him, as he could not face a delivery without making sure his helmet was intact.
According to the rules set by the ICC, the batter needs to be ready within two minutes after the fall of a wicket. Mathews entered to bat a minute and 10 seconds after the fall of a wicket, and after reaching the crease, he was informed that he had 30 seconds left.
However, due to his chin strap coming off, instead of informing the officials, Mathews signalled the dugout for a replacement. The rule states that the batter should inform the on-field umpires of a change in gear so that time can be managed efficiently. However, with the helmet fiasco, two minutes and 30 seconds had already passed, and as Shakib Al Hasan appealed to the umpires, Mathews was dismissed without facing a single delivery on a timeout.
The 36-year-old had a lot to say in the post-match press conference, and he even went on to suggest that equipment malfunction should be treated as a separate delay and should not be accounted for as a timed-out dismissal.