Big trouble is brewing for Rajasthan Royals (RR) as their IPL 2026 matches at the iconic Sawai Man Singh Stadium in Jaipur are now in serious danger. The franchise had raised major security concerns about its home ground and reportedly planned to shift the base to another city.
CM office calls urgent high level meeting with Rajasthan Royals
The matter has become so serious that the Rajasthan Chief Minister’s Office has called an immediate high-level meeting with the officials of Rajasthan Royals. The meeting is expected to be held on February 17 or February 18, but it is not yet clear whether Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma will attend it or not.
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An official source of Rajasthan State Sports Council (RSSC) has confirmed this to Times of India. He revealed, “The meeting is confirmed for Tuesday or Wednesday, but it is still not known whether the CM will attend it or not.”
The 700-page audit report shocked
The whole drama started after a detailed independent audit of the Sawai Man Singh Stadium. The royals had asked Tata Projects to conduct this inspection between the end of December and the end of January. He has prepared an audit report of about 700 pages.
The report reportedly highlights serious flaws. This raised concerns about the structural strength of parts of the stadium. It also highlighted fire safety gaps, poor emergency evacuation routes and other safety issues at the venue.
RR seeks full approval after structural and fire safety issues come to light
The audit checked the stadium in accordance with national regulations such as the National Building Code, National Electric Code and fire safety standards. They have found that the stadium does not fully meet the criteria required to host large crowds during the IPL.
Rajasthan Royals have sought clear security clearance from the BCCI, IPL Governing Council and state authorities. The franchises said they are ready to continue playing their home matches in Jaipur, but only if proper security clearance is given.
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Government backed down, declared stadium safe
However, Rajasthan Chief Secretary V Srinivas has written a letter to BCCI Secretary Devjit Saikia and stressed that the safety of spectators is their top priority. He also informed that a high level committee including experts from MNIT and PWD engineers inspected the stadium.
This committee reportedly found the stadium to be overall safe and said only minor improvements were needed. These differing views have created confusion and tension between the franchises, the state government and the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA).
Rajasthan Royals home matches likely to be shifted to Pune
There are growing fears that if the security issues are not resolved quickly, some or all of Rajasthan Royals’ home matches for IPL 2026 may be shifted to another city, possibly Pune, and that would be a huge loss for local business and state pride.
Recently, Assam all-rounder Riyan Parag was named the new captain of Rajasthan Royals after Sanju Samson moved to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) ahead of IPL 2026. Players like Ravindra Jadeja, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Dhruv Jurel were overlooked for the top role by the management.
