INDIA: In a recent cricket match, Angelo Mathews made history by becoming the first international cricketer to be ‘timed out’ during the Bangladesh-Sri Lanka ODI World Cup match in New Delhi. This rare dismissal brought back memories of an incident involving former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly, who narrowly escaped a similar fate over a decade ago.
The ‘timed out’ dismissal is an unusual occurrence in cricket, governed by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) law, which states that a batsman must be ready to face the next delivery within three minutes of the previous dismissal. However, the ICC World Cup 2023 playing conditions have a stricter time limit of just two minutes for the incoming batsman.
During the Bangladesh-Sri Lanka match, Angelo Mathews found himself facing this unique dismissal when he took over two minutes to assume his batting position due to helmet issues. The delay prompted an appeal by Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan, which was upheld by the on-field umpire, resulting in Mathews being declared ‘timed out.’
This incident harkens back to a memorable moment involving Sourav Ganguly during a South Africa Test at Cape Town in 2007. When India lost a wicket and Sachin Tendulkar was the next batter, he was not allowed to enter the pitch because of his time off the pitch, and VVS Laxman was having a shower, so Ganguly, who was still in his tracksuit, had to come out to bat.
Despite exceeding the time limit by three minutes, the Proteas skipper at the time, Graeme Smith, chose not to appeal and patiently waited for Ganguly to come out to bat.
While the Angelo Mathews incident marked the first ‘timed out’ dismissal in international cricket, there have been six instances of batters facing this unusual fate in first-class cricket.
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