Jaipur: Rajasthan RoyalsDuring their clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the home ground, Sawai Mansingh Stadium, the field came into limelight due to some unusual dropped catches. The issue sparked widespread debate, with players and experts pointing to the stadium’s newly installed floodlights as a possible factor. New LED floodlights were installed in the venue just before the start of the 2026 season. While they offer significantly more brightness and better overall visibility, players have had initial difficulties adjusting to strong glare and altered lighting conditions.
Royals head coach Kumar Sangakkara acknowledged the adjustment period for the fielders. “I think they’ve done a great job redoing the floodlights. They’re LED lights, and then you know, they’re completely different than what we use at other grounds. They’re much brighter and provide a greater degree of visibility. So we’re trying to see what the right adjustments are so the fielders are comfortable and don’t lose the ball in the lights.”“So we’ve talked to the ground officials and they’ve tried to lower or raise or change the direction of the lights. And in the second game, I think it was fine. It’s never easy when the lights are flashing, but I think they’ve done a great job with the ability to adjust it, so it’s great to have such good lighting for modern technology,” he added.SMS Stadium now has a maximum lux level of 3500, a significant upgrade from the lowest in the league until last year.
