5 interesting similarities between Sourav Ganguly's Pune Warriors India and MS Dhoni's Rising Pune Supergiants

Two of India’s all-time great skippers Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni have brought umpteen laurels to the country. Ganguly was the one who instilled the much-needed aggression in the Indian squad and it was under his leadership that India began to prosper overseas. On the other hand, Dhoni led India to many memorable wins in various multi-team tournaments. He became the first captain in the world to win three different global ICC Trophies. Dhoni’s record in the IPL is also magnificent as he has won the trophy twice with his previous team Chennai Super Kings.

However, both these masterminds failed to do well with a team from one particular city in India – Pune. They were unable to cast their magic spells when they led the Pune franchises and they came under huge criticism too.

Though both teams are not the same and are not owned by the same company either, the connection with Pune is something in common.

In 2012, the Ganguly-led Pune Warriors India finished at the bottom of the table with 8 points in 14 games. Meanwhile, the Dhoni-led Rising Pune Supergiants are currently languishing at the 7th spot in the points tally with 6 points in 11 games, and their chances of qualifying for the playoffs are over.

Does this prove the adage, “A captain is as good as his team” true? We have tried to find out some interesting similarities between the two teams.

Here are the 5 interesting points of similarity between Sourav’s PWI and Dhoni’s RPS.

1. Sourav and MS Dhoni failed to lead from the front

Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni both failed to lead from the front

In the 2012 edition, Ganguly was made the captain of the Pune Warriors side as Yuvraj Singh was declared unfit for the tournament. Ganguly, who retired from international cricket in 2008, looked a little out of sorts as he only managed to score 268 runs in 15 matches, putting up an average of 17.86. His strike rate of 98.89 was very low as per T20 standards and some of his decisions regarding the team selection also came under heavy scrutiny.

The decisions to drop good performers like Jesse Ryder and Marlon Samuels in some of the games that season raised quite a few eyebrows in particular.

This season, Dhoni too has received a lot of flak. His own performances with the bat haven't been up to the mark as he has failed to live up to his ‘best finisher’ tag this season. Though his average in the IPL 2016 is 30.28, he has been nowhere near his fluent best in the tournament so far.

Also, some of his decisions have come under heavy scrutiny. He has not given the full quota of overs to his premier spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in several matches and that has received a lot of brickbats. Some of his bowling changes have also come under the scanner as his team has failed to defend targets.

2. Lacked in batting firepower

Robin Uthappa and Ajinkya Rahane played well at the top for both the sides

Both the Pune sides desperately missed an impact player in the batting department. These two teams had too many batsmen who were of similar moulds. The average strike rate of the opening batsmen for both the teams is below 130 and that hurt them in the powerplay overs.

Robin Uthappa and Ajinkya Rahane were the only consistent performers for Ganguly and Dhoni’s teams respectively, with each of them scoring over 400 runs in their time at Pune.

However, for both the teams, barring Steve Smith, no top-order batter possessed a strike rate of more than 130. Even if the top-order batsmen managed to build a solid platform, the much-required impetus later on was missing.

We can also look at the average strike rate of the five batsmen who had the best strike rates for the both the teams. For Ganguly’s team the average strike rate is as low as 123.93 and for Dhoni’s team, it’s 142.72. But for Dhoni’s side, the average strike rate includes the strike rate of Steve Smith who is now out of the tournament with an injury.

3. Common links

Mitchell Marsh, Ashok Dinda and Steve Smith were a part of both Sourav and Dhoni’s teams

Both the sides have three common links. Three players represented both the sides; they are: Steve Smith, Ashok Dinda and Mitchell Marsh.

Steve Smith played well for both the franchises amassing 362 and 270 runs in 2012 and 2014 respectively. This year, the Australian skipper played only 8 games before pulling out from the tournament owing to an injury. Smith, in his time with RPS, scored a hundred even though it went in vain as his side lost that game to Gujarat Lions.

Ashok Dinda featured for both the sides, picking up 7 and 9 wickets respectively in 2012 and 2014. Whilst he has picked up 7 wickets once again this year, his economy rate has improved since 2012 with the bowler giving away 7.04 runs per over compared to 8.08 in 2012.

The young Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh was part of both the franchises. Whilst not playing a single game in 2012, this year’s IPL saw him make only 3 appearances before crashing out of the tournament due to an injury

4. The curious case of ‘chasing and defending’

While Sourav’s team failed to chase, Dhoni’s team failed to defend totals

The Ganguly-led Pune side failed miserably in chasing targets. They fell short on eight occasions. whilst also losing some close encounters along the road.

On the other hand, the Dhoni-led RPS has failed miserably to defend targets on a regular basis. Their weak bowling attack has failed to defend targets as high as 195 and in total, they have lost six games defending totals.

That proves that both teams lacked in one particular aspect of the game – a good finisher.

5. Missing an impactful all-rounder

Two of the best captains of India lacked an impactful all-rounder in their Pune sides

In T20s, the importance of an impact all-rounder is paramount. Guys like Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell and Shane Watson have proved that time and again in the previous editions of the IPL.

While Dhoni had the services of Bravo in Chennai Super Kings, this time around RPS has really missed someone of his calibre .

For Ganguly too, there was no one who played the role of that impact player. Jesse Ryder and Marlon Samuels showed their skills in bits and pieces but they soon faded away in the tournament.

In T20s, the value of someone like Andre Russell who will bowl his four overs and also contribute with the bat can never be overstated. Thisara Perera has tried to do that for Dhoni’s side this season but hasn’t had the winning impact that the Pune hierarchy would have expected from the Sri Lankan.

So can we say, “A captain is as good as a team”? The choice is yours.