Indian Premier League: Let's look at the two new franchises ahead of players' auction

New Delhi: February 6 can be make or break day for both the new Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises from Pune and Rajkot, as they will take on the established teams of cash-rich tournament for the first time, albeit in a bidding room.

The Rising Pune Supergiants (RPS) and Gujarat Lions (GL) have already got their respective bases covered after December 15 IPL Players' draft, but their nerves will be tested when the established teams join them in the auction.

RPS have got the services of Mahendra Singh Dhoni while GL have roped in T20 specialist Suresh Raina. Besides the two mercurial players, the teams also shared other eight players from the draft with Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Steve Smith and Faf du Plessis joining MS Dhoni in the Pune-based franchise, while Ravindra Jadeja, Brendon McCullum, James Faulkner and Dwayne Bravo heading Rajkot's way.

But, Saturday's IPL auction in Bangalore will see other teams joining the bidding war and it will be a huge task for the new teams to match the guile and tactics.

Here are brief intros to the two teams:

Rising Pune Supergiants:

Captain: Mahendra Singh Dhoni, former captain of suspended Chennai Super Kings

Owner: Sanjiv Goenka, who also co-owns Atletico de Kolkata in ISL

Coach: Stephen Fleming, who had a fruitful partnership with MS Dhoni at CSK

Home ground: Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune

Players: MS Dhoni, Ajinkya Rahane, Steve Smith, Faf du Plessis, Ravichandran Ashwin

Amount spent: Rs 39 cr on 5 players in draft

Balance purse: Rs 27 cr

Gujarat Lions:

Captain: Suresh Raina, former vice-captain of suspended Chennai Super Kings

Owners: Keshav Bansal (Intex Technologies)

Coach: Brad Hodge, widely traveled former Australian middle-order batsman

Home ground: Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot

Players: Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Brendon McCullum, James Faulkner, Dwayne Bravo

Amount spent: Rs 39 cr on 5 players in draft

Balance purse: Rs 27 cr