Third umpire Michael Gough in the firing line over Sanju Samson dismissal row: 'He is a very good friend of mine but…'

Despite a good 12 hours removed from Delhi Capitals' win against Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2024 match last evening, Sanju Samson's controversial dismissal continues to make news. The Rajasthan Royals captain had blazed away to 86 off 45 balls and looked primed to see his side home before getting caught in the deep. But as simple as it may sound, it wasn't. Shai Hope's catch at long-on triggered controversy as Samson was given despite what many feel without any substantial evidence. Hope's foot was within touching distance of the ropes, and while the third umpire was referred to, that the decision was made quickly left many, mostly Royals and Samson's fans.

The man making that decision, who was sitting in the box, Michael Gough, came under the firing line, with former England captain Paul Collingwood having reservations about the decision made by his 'good friend'. So while Collingwood defended Gough and his call, he added that the official could have given himself more time and explored more angles.

"Goughy (Michael Gough) is a very good friend of mine. So I am going to defend him (chuckles). Maybe he could have given himself another angle, just to double-check. Because it was so, so close. Those decisions and those moments make a huge difference. So maybe he could have given himself a little bit more time," Collingwood told Star Sports.

"I know in the IPL, the organisers want to quicken things up, the umpires are being told that they have got to quicken the decisions. I think, on this occasion, a couple of more angles, to clarify, could have put everybody at ease. That might have been the best way to go."

Watson comes out in Gough's support

Then again, if Gough had his doubters, he found some support too, with Shane Watson coming to his defence. The former World Cup-winning Australian all-rounder, in a unique take, reckons, there was no foul-play involved in Samson's dismissal. Referring to a zoom-in angle that was only accessible to the third umpire and not the crowd, Watson felt it was the deal-breaker.

"Look, while it may look like there has been some disturbance on the ropes, if you slow it down, and the most important umpire that the third umpire had, it looks like he just somehow managed not to touch the rope. It was really touch-and-go there, but twinkle toes, on the boundary there, Shai Hope is something very special. And you can see one of the owners, Parth Jindal, being very vocal about what he thought was the decision. I know there was a bit of confusion, but I believe the umpire got it right in the end. That angle right there [the zoom-in] should have been used. So it was very clear, so there is no indecision about that call," mentioned Watson on Jio.

DC's win over the Royals took them to fifth on the points table with 12 points, kept the team alive in the hunt for the Playoffs and also prevented the Royals from finalising a place in the top four, as of now.