Sawai Mansingh Stadium (Jaipur) Pitch Report, Results & Stats

Sawai Mansingh Stadium – Jaipur

The Sawai Man Singh Stadium is a cricket stadium located in Jaipur, which serves as the capital of India’s western state of Rajasthan. The stadium has seen limited international fixtures since its first tryst with international cricket in 1983 when India played Pakistan here in an ODI. The stadium gained much prominence in the 2000s when it became witness to some special batting feats by some of India’s biggest cricket stars. Besides, the ground got a new lease of life with the advent of the Indian T20 League in 2008 as it became the home ground of the team hailing from Rajasthan in the league. The success of Rajasthan in the first ever season under Australian Shane Warne was based on making the Sawai Man Singh Stadium the team’s fortress. While in future editions, the team didn’t go on to win a trophy, it still continued its formidable run at the ground. In 2023, while the action of the Indian T20 League will make a comeback to the stadium, it will only host five matches as the team will play the two other home games at Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati, Assam.

The Nature of the Pitch
Like most grounds in India, the pitch at Sawai Man Singh also favors the batters. However, the bigger square boundaries often put the brakes on the big scores as well as the high temperatures in matches played in the afternoon. In ODIs, the ground has seen some high scores being chased down by the team batting second easily. The teams that have batted second have won 12 out of the 19 contests in the 50 over format. The story is similar in the Indian T20 League too where 32 out of the 47 matches have been won by the team chasing. The average score batting first throughout the league has been around 160 while the average 1st innings winning score has been 175. Despite multiple scores between 195 to 200, no team has managed to score 200 in the league on this ground with the highest score being 197 by Rajasthan on two occasions.

General Information about the Stadium
Established in 1969, the stadium had hosted only a handful of international fixtures until the mid 2000s when it underwent a major renovation. Before the 2006 Champions Trophy, the stadium got floodlights and new media rooms along with two new blocks. The capacity of the stadium is around 30,000 now. In 2020, however, the Rajasthan Govt. announced the plans of constructing a new stadium in the state with a capacity of 75,000, casting a doubt on the future of Sawai Man Singh stadium. Due to a ban on the state association from 2013 to 2018, the stadium didn’t host any international fixture until 2019 when it hosted its first and only T20I. Due to the high temperature experienced in the state, international fixtures generally take place towards the end of the year here.

History
The stadium was named after Sawai Man Singh II, the former Maharaja of the state of Jaipur After hosting a few ODIs, the ground hosted its first Test in 1987. The match between India and Pakistan, saw Pakistan President General Zia-ul-Haq attend the second day’s play as part of his “Cricket for Peace” initiative. The match, however, ended in a draw due to rain and some controversy as Pakistan objected to the measures taken by the ground staff to prepare the pitch after the rain. The match proved to be the only Test here. The stadium also got to host ODIs in the 1987 and 1996 World Cup. In 2005, MS Dhoni, in only his second year of international cricket hit 183* against Sri Lanka in an ODI played here. In 2013, India chased a target of 360 runs against Australia losing only 1 wicket as Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli scored centuries while Shikhar Dhawan made 95.

Trivia
In an ODI against Australia in 2013, Virat Kohli scored a century in just 52 deliveries, the fastest by an Indian in the format.
India’s chase of 360 against Australia in the same ODI in 2013 is their highest ever chase in an ODI.
ODI cricket’s most prolific opening pair – Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly – opened the batting for the first time in an ODI on this ground.