MS Dhoni to play for new Pune team in Indian Premier League

MS Dhoni will play for Pune franchise in next year's Indian Premier League after being picked first at Tuesday's dispersal draft.

Players from the suspended Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals, banned for the next two years over a 2013 corruption and spot-fixing scandal, were available to the new teams based in Pune and Rajkot.

Tuesday's draft saw 10 players selected, five per franchise, with the remaining players put back into the auction which will take place in February.

Dhoni and Suresh Raina have been Chennai team-mates since the IPL started, but Raina was selected second and will play for Rajkot next season.

Ravindra Jadeja was the second pick made by Rajkot, who also picked up New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum as their first overseas selection and finished off with Australia all-rounder James Faulkner and Dwayne Bravo from the West Indies.

Dhoni's international team-mate Ravichandran Aswhin will continue to be his IPL team-mate as well after being picked up by Pune, who also added Australia captain Steve Smith, South Africa T20 skipper Faf du Plessis and India batsman Ajinkya Rahane.

Australia's Shane Watson and Mike Hussey, South Africa's Chris Morris and the West Indies' Dwayne Smith remained unsold and will now be auctioned in Bangalore in February. 

Watch the Indian Premier League on Sky Sports in 2016 and warm up for that with the Big Bash League from Australia, which starts on Thursday at 8.40am with a a Sydney derby between the Thunder and the Sixers.