Published 13:16 IST, January 21st 2020
Matheesha Pathirana's 175 km/hr ball forces Twitterati to quiz ICC over speed guns
In the 7th match of the ICC Under-19 World Cup 2020, Matheesha Pathirana was recorded to bowl a ball at 175 kmph during the IND-SL game. Here are the details.
As Lasith Malinga gradually makes his way out of cricket, Sri Lanka may have a new sling-bowling talent in the form of Matheesha Pathirana. The 17-year-old, who is currently playing in the ICC Under-19 World Cup for the Emerald Isles nation, has grabbed a lot of eyeballs for his lethal, slingy style that resembles Malinga's action. In Sunday's Under-19 World Cup encounter between India and Sri Lanka, it seemed like Pathirana made history when he bowled a ball at India's Yashasvi Jaiswal, which was at the speed of 175 kmph. But did the youngster actually bowl a delivery that fast?
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India U-19 vs Sri Lanka U-19: ICC goofs up with speed gun?
The 6th ball of the 4th over in the Indian innings turned out to be an uneventful wide for Sri Lanka but the live broadcast of the match showed that the ball had been bowled at a whopping 175 kilometres per hour. While a lot of fans rejoiced at a new world record, there was an equal amount of doubt regarding the speed readout as fans speculated it to be nothing but a speed gun goof-up. The current record for the fastest delivery ever is with Pakistan legend Shoaib Akhtar. Akhtar delivered a lethal delivery in the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup that clocked at 161.3 kmph. Another consideration that will have to be made is that Matheesha Pathirana's delivery was not a legal delivery and that may keep it away from being considered as the new record-holder.
Matheesha Pathirana bowling at 175 km/hr?: Twitterati question ICC
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Updated 13:16 IST, January 21st 2020