With 5 days to go for Champions League RCA, RSSC lock horns

The disagreement between Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) and Rajasthan State Sports Council (RSSC) over payment of venue fee for hosting Champions League matches at the SMS Stadium has flared further as neither of the sports bodies is willing to settle the matter amicably.

With just five days to go before the gates of SMS Stadium are thrown open for cricket lovers, sources say, the tussle needs to be resolved for the sake of the game and city’s reputation as a sporting venue.

The RSSC has demanded that RCA pay up Rs61 lakh for just the West block, but the cricket association is sticking to its guns stating that it would only pay about Rs5 lakh.

“During the IPL, when eight matches were held here we had paid the same amount [Rs5,08,000]. Why is the council now asking for such a steep amount for seven matches,” questioned RCA secretary, KK Sharma.

The SMS Stadium would be holding seven matches during Champions League, including the semi-final match. The mega tournament would be kicked off from September 21 with an encounter between Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians. A match between India and Australia will also be held at the SMS Stadium in October this year.

Earlier this year, the RCA and sports department had signed an MoU, stating that parties would mutually decide fee to be charged for each match at SMS.

An MoU was also signed between RCA and state government stating that the former must pay for using the stadium. The MoU ended a deadlock over payment for hosting IPL matches at the venue.

The row
There is disagreement between the RCA and the RSSC over the payment.
The RSSC which has control over the West Wing has asked for Rs61 lakh from RCA.

RCA has complained that the demand for a total payment of Rs2 crore to host seven matches is too steep.