Tom Moody settles debate on Shai Hope's controversial catch to dismiss Sanju Samson with evidence

Shai Hope's contentious catch to dismiss Sanju Samson at a crucial juncture in the Delhi Capitals versus Rajasthan Royals encounter at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Tuesday, May 7 divided the cricket fraternity in half. While some people felt that the catch was illegal, others reckoned that the third umpire made the right call by sending Samson back to the hut.

The incident took place when Samson was batting at 86 in Rajasthan's chase of a 222-run target. Samson slammed Mukesh Kumar straight down the ground but was caught in the deep by Hope. However, while completing the catch, he came precariously close to the boundary line. Third umpire Michael Gough looked at the replays and deemed it to be a fair catch. However, the Royals captain refused to leave the field and questioned the on-field officials about the legitimacy of the catch. In the end, the wicketkeeper-batter had to make way to the pavilion.

Now, in a new video released by official broadcasters Star Sports, it is quite conclusive that Samson was indeed out. The video showed that Hope's leg did not touch the boundary cushion. In the video, IPL-winning coach Tom Moody explained how the boundary cushion remained unmoved when the West Indies batter took the catch.

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"First thing you look at is look at the reaction of the fielder. The fielder showed no evidence of guilt. The second things is then you look at the footage as what we are seeing right now and firstly you look at, has the foot touched the cushion or has the cushion moved. In both the cases, the pictures that he has been given, firstly, the right foot is the closest. No movement whatsoever of the cushion," Moody said in the video alongside Jatin Sapru as the host.

"So, he firstly sees, yes the foot is close but then he will look at the cushion. Has the cushion moved? Normally, creases or wrinkles in some sort of way and he has made a very smart and sharp decision on the evidence that he has been given that it was clearly a catch and the foot did not make contact with the boundary. You can see there's millimeters but that's all you need to make a clear decision. So, again the decision was made very, very expertly. One thing we got to consider with these third umpire reviews, they are taking too long, aren't they? I think last night was a great example of how efficient it can run to keep the game moving," Moody ended.

Also Read: 'It was pretty clear' - Navjot Singh Sidhu gives his take on Sanju Samson’s controversial dismissal against DC

Rajasthan were chasing a 222-run target against the Capitals. Sanju's blistering knock kept the Royals in the hunt but after he was dismissed, it was always going to be tough for them to get over the line. In the end, the Capitals held their nerves and won by 20 runs.