Angelo Mathews made history in the ODI World Cup 2023 when he became the first batter in international cricket to be declared ‘timed out’ during a match against Bangladesh. The former Sri Lanka captain has shared screenshots of video evidence to contest the umpires’ decision that led to this milestone dismissal. This pivotal moment occurred in a significant clash between two Asian cricket nations, with Bangladesh emerging victorious by three wickets.

For those unfamiliar with the incident, Angelo Mathews was deemed ‘timed out’ at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi due to an unexpected delay caused by a helmet strap issue.

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This delay prevented him from reaching the popping crease within the stipulated time frame to take strike. When the 36-year-old was finally ready to face his first ball in the innings after the dismissal of Sadeera Samarawickrama, the Bangladesh captain, Shakib Al Hasan, had already appealed to the on-field umpires, resulting in the ‘timed out’ decision.

Mathews’ Timed Out Controversy: Video Evidence and Rule Interpretation

It’s worth noting that as per ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 rule number 40.1.1, “After the fall of a wicket or the retirement of a batter, the incoming batter must, unless Time has been called, be ready to receive the ball, or for the other batter to be ready to receive the next ball within 2 minutes of the dismissal or retirement. If this requirement is not met, the incoming batter will be out, Timed out.”

During the mid-innings break, the fourth umpire of the match, Adrian Holdstock, discussed the ‘timed out’ dismissal of Angelo Mathews, noting, “This afternoon, the batter wasn’t ready to receive the ball within those two minutes even before the strap, which became an issue for him.”

In response to this, Angelo Mathews took to his official account to counter the fourth umpire’s decision. In his first post on the matter, he stated, “The 4th umpire is wrong here! Video evidence shows I still had 5 more seconds even after the helmet gave way! Can the 4th umpire rectify this, please? I mean safety is paramount as I just couldn’t face the bowler without a helmet.”

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In a subsequent post, he shared screenshots of the video evidence, saying, “Proof! From the time the catch was taken to the time the helmet strap came off.” According to the timestamps on the screenshot, Sadeera Samarawickrama was out at 15:48:50:16 hours, while Angelo Mathews made his way to the playing field at 15:50:45:14 hours, a difference of roughly around 1 minute and 55 seconds, as per the calculations of the all-round cricketer.