In a rare dismissal, Pakistan cricketer Saud Shakeel was timed out during the President's Trophy final between the State Bank of Pakistan and Pakistan Television in Rawalpindi. Shakeel is the first Pakistani cricketer and seventh overall in first-class history to be removed in this manner.

Shakeel was scheduled to bat fifth for State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) against Pakistan Television (PTV) in the President's Cup Grade 1 First-Class event. This episode emphasizes the persistent challenges with Pakistan cricket, which has been often criticized.

Following a sequence of wickets, Saud Shakeel, who was assigned to bat at No. 5, failed to reach the crease within the three-minute time limit. Amad Butt, the PTV team leader, immediately filed an appeal, which resulted in the umpires ruling in his favor, ESPNCricinfo report stated.

According to reports, Shakeel dozed asleep and missed his chance to bat on time. He now holds the unpleasant distinction of becoming the seventh player in first-class cricket history to be timed out, and the first from Pakistan.

The situation deteriorated when Mohammad Shahzad removed skipper Umar Amin and Fawad Alam in consecutive deliveries, leaving SBP in a bad position after starting their innings on 128-1.

The following batsman, Shakeel, took longer than allowed to reach the crease, which PTV took advantage of with a successful dismissal appeal.

According to MCC rule 40.1.1, after a batsman is out or retired hurt, the next batsman must be ready to face the ball within 3 minutes (180 seconds). If they fail to do so, they are declared out by the umpires as "timed out."

If the incoming hitter is not ready to assume their position at the crease or at their partner's end within the allotted time, the fielding team may request a "timed out" dismissal. If the appeal is upheld, the batsman is ruled out.

The last such instance of Time Out dismissal came in the 2023 ICC World Cup when Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews was infamously given out in this method after a helmet malfunction when Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan appealed for such.

Shahzad completed a superb hat-trick by dismissing Mohammad Irfan on the next delivery, which contributed to SBP's defeat as they were bowled out for 205.

Interestingly, due to Ramadan during which Muslims fast between sunrise and sunset, the first-class match isn’t being played during the day. The contest starts from 7:30 PM IST and continues till 2:30 AM IST including tea and dinner breaks.