Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan described feeling like he “was at war” when questioned about Angelo Mathews’ contentious dismissal in the World Cup match against Sri Lanka in Delhi. Mathews was given a timed out in the match after a helmet malfunction, making him the first international cricketer to receive such a dismissal.
Shakib explained that one of the Bangladesh fielders informed him about Mathews taking extra time to face his first ball, prompting the team to appeal to the umpire. “One of our fielders came to me and said, ‘If you appeal now, he will be out, if you are serious’. Then I appealed and the umpire asked me whether I was serious and whether I was going to take it back or not. I said no if it is in the rule if it’s out, I [won’t] take it back,” Shakib said after Bangladesh’s victory by four wickets.
Despite controversy surrounding the incident, Shakib declared, “I had to take a decision to make sure my team wins and whatever I had to do, I had to do. Right or wrong – there will be debates. But if it’s in the rules, I don’t mind taking those chances.”
Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis, on the other hand, expressed disappointment with the umpires’ handling of the situation, calling for more common sense. “It is unfortunate that it happened during a crucial time that after the fall of a wicket. Angelo, we expected him to score some runs for us, and it’s disappointing that the umpires couldn’t step in and make good decisions at that time,” Mendis said.
Shakib, fueled by the earlier incident, went on to make 82 runs off 65 balls in Bangladesh’s pursuit of Sri Lanka’s 279, ultimately getting out to Mathews, who gave him a send-off. “I thought that [incident] helped [to keep me motivated]. We talk about the fight. I am 36, that fight doesn’t come all the time. But today that helped in a way, I won’t deny that,” Shakib said.
