Meet MS Dhoni's New Teammates At Rising Pune Supergiants

BCCL

Having earned the first right to pick the icon players in the IPL Player Auction for 2016 season, it was no surprise that Rising Pune Supergiants jumped to grab the services of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. With one of the most influential sportspersons around the world, the Pune franchise got what they wanted this IPL. But what about other players?

BCCL

BCCL

Sure Dhoni has most of his Chennai Super Kings' mates with him in Rising Pune Supergiants but there are other players, from different IPL sides and newcomers who will have a first-hand experience of sharing the dressing room with Dhoni in the IPL.

Steven Smith

AFP

The Australian captain has proved his credentials as a high-impact player in Tests and ODIs. However, when it comes to T20s, Smith isn't in the same league of players yet like Virat Kohli, Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers or ever countrymen David Warner. Playing under Dhoni, Smith will only improve as a cricketer and the exchange of ideas will help in in good stead as a long-term leader of the Australian cricket teams across formats. Smith, who has previously played for Pune Warriors, Kochi Tuskers and Rajasthan Royals, was sold to Pune for Rs 5.50 crore at the auction.

Kevin Pietersen

BCCL

The former England captain who has made a massive fan following playing T20s across the world has been unpopular with the ECB back home. With IPL, Pietersen has always had a love affair as the tournament offers him the lease to express himself as a cricketer. For KP, playing with Dhoni could be a different experience altogether.

Scott Boland

Reuters

The Australian right-arm fast bowler impressed against India in the ODI series back home earlier this year and caught the eye of the IPL owners then. Boland hits the deck hard, bowls at a decent pace and gets extra bounce from the surface. Playing in India will test his skills as the wickets tend to be graveyard for hit-the-deck pacers.

Mitchell Marsh

Reuters

Mitchell Marsh, along with Dhoni, will shore up the big-hitting responsibilities in the middle and lower middle order. His ability to bowl fast as well will come in handy for Dhoni as he will add the necessary balance to the side that Dwayne Bravo used to give at CSK.

Adam Zampa

AP

The Aussie legspinner impressed in the few games at the World T20. Having playing that tournament, Zampa will look to get better at his skills. He has the ability to tie the batsmen down and reduce the scoring rate. With spinners like Ravi Ashwin and Murugan Ashwin already in the side, it will be interesting to see whether or not Zampa makes the first XI for Pune.

Peter Handscomb

AFP

The Australian-born right hand opening batsman, Handscomb holds a British passport but has lived all of his life in Melbourne and his allegiance is firmly with the country of his birth. He has been in good form for Victoria in first-class cricket, scoring two centuries this season. For Handscomb, IPL under Dhoni will be a fresh learning.

Ishant Sharma

BCCL

Dhoni knows all about Ishant Sharma having spent enough time with him in the Test and ODI teams. However, Ishant's prowess as a T20 bowler especially in the IPL has diminished with his lack of abilities to put a brake on the run-scoring.

Ajinkya Rahane

AFP

This perhaps is going to be a huge phase in Ajinkya Rahane's T20 career. Rahane hasn't been the preferred choice of opener in T20s for Dhoni and now will be the time for Rahane to show off his acumen as a top-level opener. Dhoni must feed off Rahane's experience and success at the Rajasthan Royals.

Rajat Bhatia

BCCL

Bhatia has been an under-the-radar performer in domestic cricket and IPL. His slow medium bowling and big-hitting down the order are always a boon to any side. Bhatia, who is in the twilight of his domestic career, should cherish the opportunity of playing for Pune.

Murugan Ashwin

Express

Everyone asked what's so special about Murugan Ashwin that he fetched a whopping Rs 4.5 crore contract with Rising Pune Supergiants. Well, just before the IPL auction, Ashwin, who bowls legbreak, took 10 wickets for Tamil Nadu in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy and that caught everyone's eye. More than his wickets, it was his ability to stop the run flow and an economy rate of just 5.52 in the domestic T20 tournament proved vital for him to be picked up by the new franchise. Still to make a debut, Ashwin had been a net bowler for CSK at Chepauk, their home ground.

RP Singh

BCCL

After having played for four different teams in IPL, it is for the first time that left-arm pacer RP Singh will be playing for a Dhoni-led IPL team. RP Singh hasn't quite made headlines in whatever little cricket he's played apart from IPL but he gets another crack this time.

Ankit Sharma

BCCL

The Madhya Pradesh left-arm spinner did well in the 2015-16 season taking 33 wickets that brought him back into reckoning and Pune team hopped on the prospect of picking him up for his base price of Rs 10 lakh in the auction. Sharma has played IPL for Deccan Chargers, Sunrisers Hyderabad and most successfully for Rajasthan Royals of late.

Saurabh Tiwary

BCCL

The Jharkhand middle order batsman, who rose to limelight after performing consistently for Mumbai Indians in the 2010 IPL season, was picked up by RCB for IPL 2011 but his form fizzled out. A teammate of Virat Kohli in the Under-19 World Cup winning team of 2008, Tiwary had a successful 2015-16 Ranji season with a double century and five fifties.

Deepak Chahar

BCCL

A tall strapping lad from UP, Deepak Chahar made heads roll on his Ranji Trophy debut in 2010, taking 8 for 10 against Hyderabad. His career then nosedived due to injuries and inconsistency. He was picked up at the auction for his base price of Rs 10 lakh.

Ashok Dinda

BCCL

Trolled on the internet for his high jump action while delivering a ball, Dinda has been a consistent performer for Bengal in first-class cricket. The IPL 2016 proves yet another chance for him to come back at national reckoning, that provided Dhoni gives him those chances.

Other players in the Pune team who have already shared the dressing room with Dhoni during their CSK days are Ravichandran Ashwin, Faf du Plessis, Irfan Pathan, Ishwar Pandey, Albie Morkel, Thisara Perera, Ankush Bains and Baba Aparajith.