Angelo Mathews Shares 'Proof' to Reject 4th Umpire's Claim After Timed-out Controversy

Angelo Mathews has provided ‘proof’ that he didn’t exceed the official time limit of two minutes for a new batter to take guard during Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh world cup 2023 contest in New Delhi on Monday.

Mathews became part of international cricket history when he was ‘timed out’ for having taken over two minutes to face the bowler after arriving as a new batter following the dismissal of Sadeera Samarawickrama.

The incident has snowballed into a massive controversy with Mathews first involved in a lengthy discussion with the on-field umpires and Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan how he didn’t breach the rule before giving the latter a send-off while pointing to his wrist.

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Later, players of the two teams didn’t shake hands after the match ended before Mathews let out an all-out attack on Shakib and Bangladesh, calling the act ‘disgraceful’.

The veteran allrounder later shared screengrabs of match footage showing the timestamps of Samarawickrama’s dismissal and him arriving at the crease to back his claim of still having five seconds left before the deadline of two minutes would’ve ended.

“Proof! From the time catch was taken and the time helmet strap coming off,” Mathews wrote.

During the innings break, fourth umpire, Adrian Holdstock shed some light on the dismissal.

“When it comes to timed out, the incoming batter has to be in position and ready to receive a ball within two minutes and we have certain protocols where the TV umpire at a fall of the wicket monitors the two minutes and he will relay the message on to the on field umpires,” Holdstock said.

“In the instance this afternoon, the batter wasn’t ready to receive the ball within those two minutes, even before the strap became an issue,” he added.

However, Mathews disagreed with Holdstock.

“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,” Mathews said in another post.