After the ban imposed on Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) in 2015, two new teams in the form of Rising Pune Supergiants and Gujarat Lions took centerstage.
MS Dhoni was made the captain of the Pune-based franchise but the team failed to qualify for the knockouts in the 2016 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Seeing the team struggle in the first half of the tournament, the franchise owners made a bold call of removing Dhoni from the post of captaincy and handed it over to Steve Smith.
Also, the IPL season of 2017 belonged to Harsh Goenka’s controversial statements on Dhoni. This came as a huge shock to the massive fan following of MSD. Many ruled the RPS out after the franchise decided to change the captain.
As it turned out, Steve Smith almost took a struggling side to the cusp of winning the title through his captaincy and stellar batting performances.
On the contrary, Goenka advised one and all to go ‘local’, despite opting for the overseas option of Smith ahead of Dhoni, a few years back.
“When Covid19 danger is over, let’s spend our holidays in India, eat in local restaurants, buy local veggies, buy Indian brands of clothes and support local businesses. They will need our help to survive. Let’s do our bit in helping each other stand and grow again. God bless,” tweeted Harsh Goenka, co-owner of the now-disbanded Rising Pune Supergiants.
To which, one of the fans responded by saying, “Next time you buy Pune IPL team, always have @msdhoni as captain and not Steve Smith.” However, Goenka did not stand down and replied by saying, “None of your business what I do.”
When Covid19 danger is over, let's spend our holidays in India, eat in local restaurants, buy local veggies, buy Indian brands of clothes and support local businesses. They will need our help to survive. Let’s do our bit in helping each other stand and grow again. God bless 🇮🇳!
— Harsh Goenka (@hvgoenka) April 7, 2020
Next time you buy pune IPL team, always have @msdhoni as captain and not Steve Smith. https://t.co/wrNvdxmhg5
— V M (@vihar1903) April 7, 2020
None of your business what I do
— Harsh Goenka (@hvgoenka) April 7, 2020
In the 2018 season, Dhoni returned to his beloved yellow army of CSK while Smith resumed his IPL stint with Rajasthan Royals in the subsequent season. Both Smith and Dhoni were retained by their respective franchise ahead of the auctions of 2018.
