RAJASTHAN: It was on May 12, 2013 that Rajasthan Royals last played a home game at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. A few days later, three of their players were implicated in a spot-fixing scandal. One of the owners was accused of betting on matches.
The next two seasons, before the franchise was banned for two years following an inquiry, the Royals played their home games in Ahmedabad, largely because the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) was in the Indian cricket board’s bad books. Lalit Modi, the creator of the Indian Premier League (IPL) but now persona non-grata, still pulled the strings at the RCA, and Jaipur was frozen out as a result.
Times have changed, yet they remain just the same. Where once an IPL game in Jaipur meant Modi buzzing around on the sidelines in his beige linen suit, it now means massive cut-outs and posters of CP Joshi, the current RCA chief whose political allegiances lie elsewhere. One personality cult replaced by another.
“Welcome to our fortress,” said the lettering under a faux-palatial arch as you walked into the stadium. The sponsors’ billboards on either side of the walkway featured Ajinkya Rahane, the captain, Ben Stokes and Jaidev Unadkat. If you’d just landed from Mars, you wouldn’t know that Steve Smith – who was supposed to lead the team until Sandpapergate happened – had ever existed.
The fans are all too aware of what they have lost though. “I somehow feel that we’re jinxed,” said Rahul Dhamija, a local businessman who’s agog with excitement at seeing the team back ‘home’. “No other player can fill his shoes, but in leadership terms I feel it will be blessing in disguise as Rahane is a better captain.”
The diya, the earthern lamp, has powerful symbolism in this part of the world, and midway through the Rajasthan innings, we saw the 21st-century version of spreading light, as thousands of mobile phone torches switched on across the stands.
Mandakini Shalya has been a fan for more than a decade, and the Royals’ return is a very big deal for her. “Fans here are passionate about cricket, and the name Rajasthan Royals gives us a sense of belonging to IPL,” she said, even as she spoke of how there was next to no local connect within the squad.
“There’s only one local within the franchise’s leadership group. Everyone else is based out of Bombay or elsewhere. Mahipal Lomror (who played for India at the Under-19 World Cup in 2016) was the only Rajasthan player picked at the auction. And it was only recently that they included Dishant Yagnik in the coaching staff.”
She’s also disappointed that the franchise has had very few on-ground events to publicise the team’s return, with next to no opportunity for the fans to meet their heroes. But for Dhamija, such thoughts are secondary to the excitement of seeing a possible title tilt on a ground where they have always been hard to beat.
“It feels really good to have the heat, excitement and cheering for the home team at our stadium,” he said. “The sound of halla bol (raise your voice, the team anthem) gives me goosebumps.”
On Wednesday night, as rain kept the players off the field for nearly two and a half hours, more than 10,000 stayed on to watch Rajasthan clinch their first win of the season. By the time the presentations were over, it was nearly 1am, but no one was complaining as they made their way home.
Shane Warne, who led Rajasthan to the title in season one, was in the dugout in his role as mentor, resplendent in his Jaipur-pink jersey. Since that highpoint, this is a franchise that has largely been in the news for the wrong reasons. Now, armed with a second chance, they want to put that chequered past behind them. “No controversy is big enough if you are a true fan,” said Dhamija with a smile.