IPL 2020 News: Rajasthan Royals reveal reason behind wanting to play few matches in Guwahati
What's the story?
The officials of Rajasthan Royals have disclosed that the franchise suffered harassment under the old members of the Rajasthan Cricket Association, the state’s sports council, and other top office-bearers while hosting their IPL home games in Jaipur. Hence, they had made a request to host a few of their home games in Guwahati.
The background
Last year, Rajasthan Royals had requested to shift a few of their home fixtures outside Jaipur and they picked Guwahati as their second home ground. However, the exact reason why the inaugural IPL winners wanted to adopt a new home venue was not known. The officials finally broke their silence about the same as they revealed the reasons behind their request.
The heart of the matter
Speaking to TOI on Sunday (2nd February), the franchise officials mentioned that the Sawai Man Singh Stadium is in a bad condition. They argued:
“Look at the stadium. It’s in such a bad state. The newly-elected body in RCA has just come in and they’ll need time even if they’re looking to correct things. The place has been a mess for quite some time now. Over the years, the RCA has failed to come up with good infrastructure anywhere outside of Jaipur.”
Further describing the issues that they faced while playing in Jaipur, the representatives continued:
“Be it the state’s sports council, under whose aegis the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) falls, the state machinery catering to law and order, the former officers of the RCA itself and political bigwigs in the state... they’ve all collectively given Rajasthan Royals nothing but trouble over the years. Plain harassment, that’s what we’ve suffered.”
The request of Rajasthan Royals adopting Guwahati as their second home has now been challenged in the court. Talking about the motive behind playing at the Baraspara Cricket Stadium, the officials added:
“It’s a lovely ground. Some of our leading players visited there and praised the venue. There’s a strong Marwari presence in the northeast (Royals’ fan-base in Rajasthan) and we feel welcome there. That’s why we put in a request.”
Also see – ICC Women’s T20 world cup winners list
What’s next?
It will be interesting to see if team Rajasthan’s request to play in Guwahati is granted or not. IPL 2020 will start on 29th March.