Sri Lanka all-rounder Angelo Mathews became the victim of one of the most bizarre dismissals in the history of the game, having been given 'timed out' in the Cricket World Cup 2023 match against Bangladesh on Tuesday. Feeling he was unfairly given out in an act that was against the spirit of the game, Mathews didn't hold back in expressing his frustration and anger over his dismissal. After the match, Mathews shared proof, countering the 4th umpire's explanation of the dismissal, saying he had made the crease in the stipulated timeline of 2 minutes.
Mathews was adjudged timed out after he failed to arrive at the crease within two minutes of Sadeera Samarawickrama's dismissal. Shakib made an appeal, and the umpire decided to send Mathews back as it was within the laws of World Cup cricket. Mathews had a conversation with Shakib but in the end, he didn't call back his decision forcing the veteran all-rounder to depart.
After Sri Lanka's defeat, Mathews went on to state that they have video evidence that he was at the crease within two minutes and they will put out a statement later on.
Sharing the vieo proof, Mathews wrote on X (formerly Twitter): "4th umpire is wrong here! Video evidence shows I still had 5 more seconds even after the helmet gave away! Can the 4th umpire rectify this please? I mean safety is paramount as I just couldn't face the bowler without a helmet."
When former Sri Lanka cricketer Russel Arnold highlighted the ICC playing conditions, that suggest that the batter should be ready to face the delivery in 2 minutes, Mathews argued that he couldn't be ready because of an issue with the helmet, not because he was late.
Even a still from the broadcaster suggested that Mathews had reached the crease inside the 2-minute timeline.
The fourth umpire, when asked about the incident, suggested that Mathews had exhausted the 2-minute timeline even before the helmet issue took place. As per the Sri Lanka all-rounder, however, that wasn't the case.
"Obviously, you all play to win. And if it's within the rule, it's fine. But the rule clearly says, in my incident today, within two minutes I was there. We have video evidence. We will put out a statement later on. We have video evidence, footage, everything was looked. I'm not just coming and saying things here. I'm talking with proof," Mathews said in the post-match press conference.
"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," he added.