The Rajasthan Royals have stayed among the contenders to qualify for the playoffs throughout the first half of the IPL 2026 season. Yet off the field, the inaugural champions have been troubled by controversy. First, it was their team manager, Romi Bhinder, who was spotted using a mobile phone in the dugout during a match. And then days later, a bigger trouble unfolded when captain Riyan Parag was spotted vaping in the dressing room during RR’s recent match against the Punjab Kings in New Chandigarh.
The Board of Control for India (BCCI) took a strong step against Parag on Thursday, imposing a 25 per cent fine of his match fees and handing him one demerit point.
Hours after the verdict, head coach Kumar Sangakkara issued a strongly worded statement on the incident, saying that the recent controversies have not helped the team, before revealing that the Rajasthan Royals had also addressed the vaping row.
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“Such controversies are no positives for the team and all I can say is that both issues have been addressed by the BCCI and the franchise,” he said on the eve of RR’s match against Delhi Capitals. “It is a reminder to the players that they have to maintain the team’s culture.”
The IPL statement on Parag also mentioned that the BCCI is mulling taking stringent action against the Rajasthan Royals franchise and the its officials as well to ensure that the “reputation of the IPL remains intact.”
The statement read: “The BCCI is also exploring other options to initiate proceedings for stringent action against the erring team, its officials and player/s to ensure that the reputation of IPL remains intact.”
The same was confirmed by BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia, who told PTI, “As it is written clearly in the statement, we are exploring what action to take on the team. It is not decided yet.”
Rajasthan will next be in action on May 1, against the Delhi Capitals in Jaipur.
Sangakkara also talked about Parag’s quiet run in this IPL season so far, as he pointed towards his crucial knock in the win against the Punjab Kings earlier this week. “His little innings shifted the momentum in our way,” Sangakkara said. “He brought the momentum back in our favour.”