Sanju Samson’s dismissal sparked a huge controversy during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 match no. 56, between the Delhi Capitals (DC) and Rajasthan Royals (RR). The visiting captain was eyeing his first century this season and has put his team in a comfortable spot in the chase of 222. But came the 16th over when he looked to clear the fence off Mukesh Kumar’s bowling but ended up being caught by Shai Hope near the long-off rope.
It was a brilliant effort by Hope but his feet seemed to touch the boundary cushion as he completed the catch. The umpires did have a look at the replay but were rewarded with the benefit of the doubt. The incident left Sanju agitated who even had a heated exchange with the umpires. The Rr skipper was given out on 86 while the team lost the game by 20 runs.
The RR dugout was taken aback by the decision and one of the disappointed figures was the team’s director of cricket, Kumara Sangakkara. Addressing the post-match presser, the former Sri Lanka captain spoke at length about the side’s opinion on the dismissal, also opening up on the conversations with the umpires.
“It depends on replays and angles. Sometimes, you think the foot has touched. It was a difficult one for the third umpire to judge; the game was at a crucial stage, but it happened. We have different perspectives, but at the end of the day, you have to stand by the decision the third umpire has made, even if we have a different opinion on it. Of course, we will share it with the umpires, but I thought, irrespective of that, we should’ve seen the game at home. Delhi played well,” Sangakkara told the reporters after RR’s defeat.
