The main reasons behind it were:[6] Sawai Pratap Singh made an attempt to profit from these internal dissensions of his Scindia rivals prior to the Battle of Malpura.

In March 1800, he openly rejected the money clauses of the treaty of 1791 (signed after the Battle of Patan and started to prepare for war.

Pratap Singh asked all the Rajput Rajas to join him, but the Maharaja of Marwar was the only one who answered, as the Rathors were eager to win back the territories they had lost to the Sindhias.

[6] The battle was started by a charge of the Rathor cavalry which broke the left wing of the Maratha army.

The Rathors after returning from their charge, thought that they had won the battle and mistook the Gwalior army as their Jaipur allies, they were caught unaware and shot down in great numbers and those who were able to break through the lines were bayoneted by Skinner's men.