Mathews becomes first batter to be timed out in international cricket
In what was a first in international cricket, Angelo Mathews was dismissed ‘timed out’ during the first innings of the World Cup game in Delhi between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Monday (November 6). In the 25th over of the first innings, Mathews was readying to take strike after the dismissal of Sadeera Samarawickrama when his helmet strap broke. He gestured to the dugout for a new helmet but didn’t consult with Shakib Al Hasan, the opposition captain, who went on to successfully appeal for “timed out” to onfield umpires. According to the ICC Playing Conditions for the World Cup, the incoming batter has to “be ready to receive the ball” within two minutes of a dismissal or a batter retiring. This rule has been in place in ODI cricket since June 2023. For Tests, the corresponding time limit is three minutes, and for T20Is it is 90 seconds. Samarawickrama was dismissed at 15:49 local time according to official scorers at the venue whereas Mathews was timed out at 15:54 local time. He walked in at 15:50 local time according to the official scorers, but wasn’t ready at the crease within the stipulated time. Mathews tried to plead his case with Marais Erasmus and Richard Illingworth, the onfield umpires, but to no avail. As the Bangladesh players celebrated, Mathews walked off in anger. He was seen displaying the helmet to head coach Chris Silverwood before throwing it in anger and stomping off towards the dressing room. This is the seventh overall time in men’s cricket that a ‘timed out’ dismissal has occurred, and the first time in 50-over cricket. The previous six instances were all in first-class cricket.
