Smith-led Supergiants look to start on winning note against MI

With a new captain in place, Rising Pune Supergiants would look to make amends for a poor last season but have a tough opening battle at hand against two-time former champions Mumbai Indians here on Thursday. Pune decided to replace Mahendra Singh Dhoni with Steve Smith in the leadership role. Under Dhoni, who has only played as skipper in the previous nine Indian Premier League editions, Pune could win just five matches in their debut season last year. While Dhoni would be desperate to prove a point with his blazing blade — a fitting reply for being stripped off captaincy, Smith will look to forget Australia's 1-2 loss against India in a draining Test series recently.

Dhoni might have led the now defunct team Chennai Super Kings exceedingly well in the past but proving his worth as a player with the new franchise is a challenge that the former India captain will be more than keen to conquer. However, all eyes would be on Ben Stokes, who was bought for a whopping INR 14.5 crore, and his performance with both the bat and ball will be equated with his hefty pay package. Smith and Faf du Plessis both got injured the last time but they would like to make amends in this edition of the cash-rich tournament.