Sri Lanka senior all-rounder Angelo Mathews recently became the first batter in the international arena to be dismissed as ‘timed out’. Meanwhile, the Odisha State Transport Authority (STA) used Angelo Mathews dismissal to stress the importance of using safe and certified helmets while driving on roads.
“Road Safety lesson from World Cup 2023, Don’t throw away your wicket, play a consistent long innings. Always wear ISI certified helmet 🪖 & tie the strap. Also encourage pillion rider to do so. On Field or Off Field #SafetyFirst always!” wrote Odisha STA on their social media handle.
Mathews’ timed-out
Controversy erupted during the Sri Lanka-Bangladesh 2023 World Cup game as Mathews was timed out after Shakib al Hasan appealed after the seam-bowling all-rounder called for a replacement helmet due to the broken strap.
By the time Mathews got a new helmet, two and a half minutes had passed. He was not ready to face the ball within the stipulated two minutes and now holds the misfortune of being the first international batter to be dismissed by ‘time out’.
According to the ICC regulations, a batter must be ready to face the delivery within two minutes of the fall of the previous wicket and not only taking the guard. The TV Umpire starts the clock immediately after the fall of the previous wicket.
‘Disgraceful’
“It was obviously disgraceful from Shakib and Bangladesh. If they want to take wickets like that and stoop down to that level, there’s something wrong, drastically. It’s very disappointing way that Bangladesh played. If it was mankading or obstructing the field, there’s no issue.
“Within two minutes I was at the crease, and it was when I was at the crease that my helmet broke. The umpires saw this. I still had five seconds left. After I showed my helmet, the umpires said [Bangladesh] had appealed. So I asked where common sense was because my two minutes hadn’t passed.”