Bengaluru’s M. Chinnaswamy stadium undergoes first readiness drill ahead of IPL 2026

Bengaluru's M. Chinnaswamy Stadium conducts readiness drill ahead of IPL 2026, ensuring upgrades and technical preparations are complete.

The multi-department expert committee supervising the overhaul of M. Chinnaswamy stadium held its first full-fledged drill on Monday to assess the stadium’s readiness and suggested a few minor changes.

On March 16, the Karnataka government officially cleared the stadium to host IPL 2026 matches. The decision followed the committee submitting its assessment report, stating that the stadium had undergone satisfactory upgrades.

A committee member told The Hindu that Monday’s drill was conducted to ascertain whether all remaining minor works had been completed and technical suggestions implemented.

“There were a few changes with respect to CCTV camera placement, coordination management, and queue management deployments. As all departments were present, they also suggested how coordination should take place,” the officer explained.

According to the source, the stadium overhaul has ticked all boxes regarding the implementation of initial measures detailed in the Phase 1 upgrade requirements, based on the Justice Michael Cunha report.

“On March 26, two days before the first IPL match, we will conduct a full-fledged functionality drill,” the officer said.