Pune Warriors India playing 11 from Steve Smith's IPL debut in 2012 - where are they now?
One of the finest cricketers of this generation, Steve Smith celebrates his 35th birthday on June 2. Apart from his astute performances in international cricket, Smith also featured in over 100 IPL games, and garnered 2,485 runs, with a century and 11 fifties.
In 2010, Smith was bought by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the auction as a replacement for Jesse Ryder, but could not feature in any of the games. Then, he was selected by Kochi Tuskers Kerala in the 2011 auction, but missed the season due to an ankle operation.
Smith finally made his IPL debut for Pune Warriors India on April 6, 2012 against Mumbai Indians, and was adjudged the Player of the Match. He top-scored with 39 off 32 to help the Warriors post 129 on the board. In response, Mumbai were restricted to 101/9 in their stipulated 20 overs.
On that note, let's take a look at what the playing XI of the Warriors are up to currently.
Top-order: Manish Pandey, Sourav Ganguly, Robin Uthappa
Veteran batter Manish Pandey played for champions Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2024. He garnered 42 off 31 balls against Mumbai Indians in his solitary appearance. It will be interesting to see if he finds a suitor in the IPL 2025 mega-auction.
Sourav Ganguly played for the Pune Warriors until the 2012 season. Ganguly served as the BCCI president from 2019-22, and is currently the Director of Cricket of Delhi Capitals in the IPL.
Robin Uthappa played in the IPL until the 2022 season. Presently, he works as a commentator and also takes part in various franchise tournaments involving former cricketers.
Middle-order: Callum Ferguson, Steven Smith, Marlon Samuels
Australian batter Callum Ferguson retired from professional cricket in November 2020. He works as a commentator for different broadcasting channels. Steve Smith remains one of the key players for Australia in the Tests and ODIs. He went unsold in the IPL 2024 auction.
The clutch performer for West Indies, Marlon Samuels played his last international game in 2018. In November 2023, Samuels was banned from all forms of cricket for six years, after he was found guilty of breaching the ICC anti-corruption code.
Bowlers: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Murali Kartik, Rahul Sharma, Ashok Dinda, Wayne Parnell
Bhuvneshwar Kumar played for the runners-up SunRisers Hyderabad in IPL 2024. He scalped 11 wickets in 16 games at an economy of 9.35.
Murali Kartik currently works as a commentator for various broadcasting channels. The tall spinner, Rahul Sharma currently takes part in tournaments featuring former cricketers.
Ashok Dinda was elected as the MLA for Moyna in the 2021 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election.
Meanwhile, Wayne Parnell currently plays for the Western Province in the South African domestic circuit. He picked up 14 wickets in eight games for the Pretoria Capitals in SA20 2024.