During Sri Lanka’s match against Bangladesh in Delhi, a rare and unprecedented incident occurred as Angelo Mathews was timed out, marking a first in international cricket across all formats. Mathews came in to bat at No. 6 after Sadeera Samarawickrama’s dismissal but faced an unexpected dismissal before even taking a single ball. The veteran Sri Lankan all-rounder, who entered the World Cup as a replacement player, found himself in a perplexing situation when he encountered an issue with his helmet.
The incident transpired in the 25th over of the Sri Lankan innings, just after Shakib Al Hasan dismissed Samarawickrama. Mathews, taking his time to walk in, faced helmet strap trouble, which led to his delay. As he signalled for a new helmet, Bangladesh appealed for a “timed out” dismissal, which was upheld by the umpires despite Mathews’ discussions.
According to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 playing conditions, if a batter is not ready to receive the ball within two minutes of a dismissal, they are considered “Timed out.” This incident marked the first time in international cricket, for both men and women, where a batter was dismissed following the “timed out” law.
