(Cricket News) The all-rounder from Sri Lanka, Angelo Mathews, gave screenshots of ‘visual proof’ to disprove the umpires’ decision to remove him from a highly contentious but historically significant time-out during a World Cup 2023 match against Bangladesh at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium. After Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan appealed, Mathews was given a time-out in an unusual situation that has never been witnessed in international cricket.

Shakib had just gotten the wicket of Sadeera Samarawickrama with the second ball of his over. In walked Mathews to the crease, but before he could take his guard, he realized the strap of his helmet was broken, and without taking permission from the umpires, he called for a new one. Seeing all this, the Bangladesh fielders decided to raise an appeal of time out against Mathews. After a long discussion, including several pleas from Mathews to the umpires – Richard Illingworth and Marais Erasmus – and Shakib, the former Sri Lanka captain was declared timed out.

With the second ball of his over, Shakib had just removed Sadeera Samarawickrama from the game. Mathews made his way to the crease, but before he could lower his guard, he noticed that the strap on his helmet was broken. Without consulting the umpires, he requested a replacement. When the Bangladeshi field players saw all of this, they made the decision to file a time-out request against Mathews. Following an extended deliberation, during which Mathews made multiple entreaties to both Shakib and the umpires, Richard Illingworth and Marais Erasmus, the former captain of Sri Lanka was deemed timed out.

The laws of the game explicitly stipulate that the batter must be prepared to face the first ball within three minutes of the last dismissal; hence, Shakib and the Bangladeshi players were right to file an appeal. However, the duration is two minutes during World Cups. There is no mention of an equipment malfunction as a potential outage for the batter in the playing conditions. Is it possible that Shakib withdrew the appeal?

Shakib was questioned twice by the on-field umpires, but the skipper of Bangladesh chose to stick with his choice, as was later disclosed. Should the umpires have used their discretion to give Mathews the benefit of the doubt in light of his broken helmet strap when Shakib refused to drop the appeal?

In order to shed light on the situation, fourth umpire Adrian Holdstock stated that Mathews had already exceeded his two minute allotment before experiencing problems with his helmet strap.

The MCC cricket laws are superseded by the playing conditions for the ICC World Cup. Holdstock clarified in an interview with Ian Bishop that the incoming batter or his partner must be in position and ready to receive the ball within two minutes of the timed out, wicket falling, or even the retirement of a batter.

As per our protocols, the TV umpire keeps an eye on the two minutes until the wicket. He will then communicate the message to the umpires who are on the pitch. Furthermore, the fourth umpire stated that even before the strap became a problem for the hitter in the afternoon incident, he was not prepared to receive the ball within those two minutes.

Angelo Matthews took to X to explain his grievances, stating that – 

“Yes, that’s right, two minutes had passed before he had received the next delivery,” he replied in response to Bishop’s follow-up question regarding the timings.

“Legal requirements state that the fielding captain started the appeal process, bringing his request for a timed-out appeal to Erasmus, the stand-in umpire. The fielding captain claimed a timeout just after the strap came loose. ”  Within two minutes, I was there. We have video evidence. We will put out a statement later on. We have video evidence and footage, and everything was looked at. I’m not just coming and saying things here. I’m talking with proof.

“So, we have the video evidence where, from the time the catch was taken, and then from the time I walked into the crease, I still had five seconds after breaking my helmet. So, we talk about safety of the players. You guys tell me if It’s right for me to take my guard without my helmet on? It’s just pure common sense.

“That’s why I think the umpires also had a bigger job at the time, because they could have at least gone back and checked. So, we talk about player safety. And a wicketkeeper for the spinner is not – they don’t let him keep without his helmet. So how can I take my guard without my helmet? It’s a complete equipment malfunction,” Mathews said.

Regarding the game, Sri Lanka scored 279 off of a century from Charith Asalanka. Shakib scored an incredible 82 off 65 balls in response, while Najmul Shanto hit 90, helping Bangladesh reach home with 8.5 overs remaining and three wickets remaining.

See also: Explaining World Cup Semi-final Scenarios for All Five Teams.