How about a little talk on operation of franchises? If you were in charge?
Chennai: I'd change the name to, say, Sparkplugs- an ideal name for the TN Ranji side. The team is a little light on bowling, so I'd get in Stuart Clark for Chamara or Oram or even Fleming. Clark, in fresh, should come for not too many. I'd even transfer off both the Kiwi and Chamara and then spend a lot on young opener Vijay.
Hyderabad: I'd stick to the name Deccan Chargers. They need some firepower in bowling, so I'd trade off Afridi and Gibbs for Morne Morkel, Mitchell Johnson and Stuart Clark. I'd look for relatively fresher, cheaper options, so that there is enough to hold on to Rohit Sharma and RP Singh.
Bangalore: They need some dynamic players. Kallis, Steyn and Jaffer to go for Hopes, Bracken and Uthappa. I'd even sell off Cameron White for, probably, Dave Hussey. I'd save enough to keep Ross Taylor, Misbah and Virat Kohli.
Kolkata: First, I'd get back those five domestic players sent back by Shah Rukh Khan. Cheteshwar Pujara, for instance, is a key player among them, and I'd work out a way for enough cash to keep him in place. Without thinking too much, I'd sell off Salman Butt, Umar Gul (or Akhtar, if he can't stay fit) and Chris Gayle. This team has too many weaknesses on the field, so hot on the list are Symonds, Clarke, Kallis and Morne Morkel. They can also add some stability to their batting.
Kings XI Punjab: One of my personal favourites. I'd sell off Hopes and get enough money to protect Lee, Mills, Irfan and Chawla from poachers. Not a team to change too much. That said, I'd get back those five players sent back by Ness and Preity.
Rajasthan Royals: I'd sell off Kamran Akmal, but here too I'd hold, rather than transfer.
Mumbai Indians: They need stability in batting, but I'd stick to Indian players, because we wouldn't want to disturb the core group of Pollock, Malinga (if fit), Dilhara and Nel in the bowling. I'd send off Luke Ronchi and Uthappa, and get the money to buy out Rohit Sharma or Vijay. Managing all those bits-and-pieces (or half of it) players will be tough. Changing the name, though, shouldn't be.
Delhi Daredevils: Middle-order as well as active lower-order are two issues to take care of. I'd send off Shoaib Malik to get in Thilan Thushara or Mitchell Johnson. This isn't a team to make too many changes to.
New Franchise #1: I'd base this in Baroda and buy out all the players from the Baroda Ranji team from elsewhere- namely, Irfan, Zaheer, Yusuf, Munaf, Pinal Shah, Rajesh Pawar and Pujara. To fill up the rest, I'd look for a steady top-six. Chopra isn't doing much for Kolkata, and he will be useful. He is useful even in a limited-overs game. There are others not used at all that we can buy out, like Manhas, Yashpal and Vijay. Among foreign recruits, I'd look for Langer, Pietersen, Joyce, Mohammed Yousuf and Peter Fulton.
New Franchise #2: I'd base this one in Lucknow and buy out the UP/MP/Railways players from elsewhere, so the core group will have Kaif, Raina, RP Singh, Chawla, Praveen Kumar and Tyagi. Outside of that, I'd pick more batsmen- again, Chopra and Vijay are targets. A spinner is essential, so I'd go for Delhi's Nanda. Among foreigners, I'd pick Haddin, Thushara, Neil McKenzie and Chamara Silva for a starting lineup.