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Cricket PlayersRCB told to explore options other than DY Patil Stadium; RR's IPL 2026 home games to stay at Jaipur: Report
RR to stay in Jaipur for IPL 2026, while RCB is asked to explore other options.
Royals are now expected to keep Jaipur as a home base for IPL 2026 — but only if the city can deliver on the basics before the first ball is bowled. After weeks of uncertainty and exploratory conversations with other states, the franchise’s preferred outcome has shifted back toward staying put, with the Sawai Mansingh Stadium’s readiness emerging as the decisive clause.
The Royals’ position is simple: home is home, but not at the cost of a sub-par matchday product. With the season scheduled to begin on March 26 and run till May 31, the clock is already loud enough to be heard from the upper tiers at SMS — roughly a month-and-a-half window to get the venue in shape.
Stadium deadline, Pune as Plan B
As reported by Cricbuzz, the sticking point isn’t sentiment — it is infrastructure. The franchise wants the venue’s facilities and amenities brought up to standard, and quickly. If the upgrades move on schedule, Jaipur remains the anchor. If they don’t, Pune stays the escape hatch, with the Maharashtra Cricket Association already sounded out as a contingency.
There is also a political nudge in the background. The Rajasthan government, the report says, has stepped in, reluctant to see the “Rajasthan” in Rajasthan Royals play its home games elsewhere. The BCCI, too, is understood to have encouraged the franchise to explore staying in Jaipur rather than making a clean break.
Even if the Jaipur plan is cleared, it is unlikely to be a full-season monopoly. The expected split is four of seven home matches in Jaipur, with the remaining three in Guwahati — keeping intact the multi-venue model the Royals have been working with.
MI denying saying no to RCB
Mumbai Indians have denied turning down Royal Challengers Bengaluru, but are believed to have advised RCB to look at other cities first before seeking to use DY Patil Stadium. Indore, Raipur, Visakhapatnam, Cuttack and Thiruvananthapuram are among the venues in the mix, and the report notes RCB have already made arrangements to stage some games in Raipur amid uncertainty over the availability of the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
The IPL schedule itself is expected only after state election dates are announced in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry and West Bengal, underlining how the league’s planning now moves in tandem with the national calendar.
The broader takeaway is familiar: IPL home advantage is increasingly tied to logistics, not nostalgia. For Rajasthan, Jaipur is still the address — provided the stadium is ready when the league turns up at the door.
