Guwahati: A fresh controversy has erupted after television cameras caught a long-serving Rajasthan Royals (RR) backroom employee using a mobile phone in the team dugout during their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 match against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Friday.
Romy Pinder, who has played various roles within the Royals support staff since the league’s inaugural season in 2008, watched on the phone as he sat next to young batter Vaibhav Suriyavanshi.
Images of the incident were widely shared on social media following the match, which RR won by six wickets.
It has been confirmed that Binder, who has been appointed as 15-year-old Suryavanshi’s “local guardian” during the tournament, is serving as the team manager.
A Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) official confirmed that mobile phones are strictly prohibited in the dugout during the match in violation of the Players and Match Officials Area (PMOA) protocol.
As per IPL’s official Player and Match Officials Area (PMOA) protocol for the 2026 season, there are clear restrictions on the use of mobile phones in team environments to maintain integrity and prevent misconduct during matches.
The protocol stipulates that communication devices can only be used in designated secure zones and not in defined match areas, with particular emphasis on dressing room and dugout settings.
“The team manager can use the phone in the dressing room, but not in the dugout.”
“It may be careless but there should be some action as it is a violation,” said a BCCI official. “Whether it’s a caution or ban will depend on the match referee and the ACU (Anti-Corruption Unit) report. The IPL governing body can take a call based on that.”
To date, Pinder has not been formally charged with breaching the IPL Code of Conduct.
The incident cast a shadow over an otherwise celebratory evening for Rajasthan Royals, with Suryavanshi earning the man-of-the-match award for his 78 off just 26 balls – an innings that propelled him to the top of the Orange Cap rankings for the tournament’s leading run-scorer.
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