On Monday, in ICC WordCup 2023, Angelo Mathews became the first ever in international cricket to be dismissed by timed out. In Delhi’s Arun Jaitley stadium, during Sri Lanka’s clash against Bangladesh, Mathews moved back to the stands without facing a single ball.
In the 38th match of the tournament, when the Sri Lankan side was at 135/4, Mathews came to the crease with hopes of staying in the semi-final race, but the strap of his helmet broke. The Sri Lankan side called for the new helmet, and during the wait, Bangladeshi skipper Shakib Al Hasan appealed for time out. On-field umpires Richard Illingworth and Marais Erasmus talked with each other and ruled the batter timed out.
The rare dismissal contributed to a tense atmosphere, Mathews moved back to the stands furious and dropped his helmet, which caused this first-ever dismissal.
This issue also led to several verbal exchanges between both sides players, making Arun Jaitley’s atmosphere more tense.
On this appeal and decision, Charith Asalanka, who made his century, pointed out Mathews’ dismissal as not good for the spirit of cricket.
Several former players also reacted to this first-ever international dismissal. South African former Dale Steyn wrote that wasn’t cool, while Former Indian batter Gautam Gambhir described it absolutely pathetic.
If we see this dismissal from the rules of cricket, it seems to be a legitimate decision. According to the rules of cricket, after the dismissal of a batsman, an upcoming player must face the ball within two minutes, otherwise, he would be timed out. This is what happened to the Sri Lankan all-rounder.
However, if the Bangladeshi skipper had taken his appeal back, Mathews would have gotten a chance to play, and maybe the result would have been different.
After the dismissal of Mathews, the Sri Lankan side was only able to set a target of 279 runs on the loss of all wickets. Bangladeshi side chased the score in the 42nd over on the loss of 7 wickets.
This win for Bangladesh set up a good place ending for them in the World Cup 2023 edition, while Sri Lankan’s hopes of staying in the semi-final race ended.