Few in Pune, even those who might have depended on Spencer’s Retail for their daily purchases, would relate with the RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group as a business entity.

Yet, the Kolkata-based business house has chosen the city, formerly the home of Sahara’s Pune Warriors, to be home to Rising Pune Supergiants, one of the two latest entrants to the 2016 season of IPL, which is due to kick off in a week.

Demography The answer might lie somewhere in the demographic mix of the city as much as in the fiscal prudence of hosting matches on a home ground that actually earns the team owners some money in addition to lots of brownie points.

“The city has a good mix of students, information technology professionals, corporate culture as well as rich builders,” reasons Raghu Iyer, CEO of the team, who stepped in the shoes just a few weeks ago.

What is left unsaid but is quite obvious is that what better wicket than cricket led by its poster boy MS Dhoni to help establish a link with the locals?

On the fiscal side, Iyer points out that the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA)-run stadium at Gahunje on the city’s outskirts is well run and actually helps team owners make some money.

Profits The reference is to MCA president Ajay Shirke’s tough stance on complimentary tickets. As opposed to the norm of distributing as many as half the tickets available as freebies, Shirke limits these to 5-10 per cent of the total number, helping the gate collections to actually come into the owner’s kitty.

Additionally, the presence of large corporate houses also makes it easier to sell the dozen odd ‘boxes’ which attract a price tag of ₹25,000 for each of 12 seats. This is a stark contrast to say Jaipur, where finding takers for these premium seats can be quite challenging.

Responding to whether the newbie team had managed to get sponsors, Iyer said a handful, including Marriott, were on board and some more announcements were in the offing.

Tickets for the IPL — ranging from ₹800 to ₹25,000 apiece — go on sale on April 4.

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