 "Dhoni goes to Pune, Raina heads to Rajkot")
On the other hand, Suresh Raina was the first preference for Rajkot, the other new team, which is owned by Intex Mobiles.
He will also get an identical Rs 12.5 crore by virtue of being the first player selected by the franchise.
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Seven players of the suspended Chennai Super Kings, including Dhoni, were picked along with three others from the Rajasthan Royals, also banned from the league for two years.
In-form batsman Ajinkya Rahane was the second choice for Pune, while Rajkot opted for Ravindra Jadeja in the same position. Both players will be entitled to a purse of Rs 9.5 crore per year.
The draft process was necessitated following the suspension of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals from the IPL for two years in the wake of the 2013 spot-fixing and betting scandal. (IPL DRAFT: BATTING THE BEST)
The suspension was ordered by the Supreme Court-appointed R M Lodha committee, which was formed to decide the quantum of punishment following the investigations.
Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was picked by Pune as their third choice for Rs 7.5 crore. New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum was Rajkot's choice in the same slot. In the fourth spot, both the teams opted Australians with Steve Smith (Rs 5.5 crore) going to Pune and James Faulkner going to Rajkot.
Pune opted for South African batsman Faf du Plessis as their fifth and final player, while West Indian Dwayne Bravo was Rajkot's pick. Both players will get Rs 4 crore.
The players not picked will now go to the general IPL auction scheduled for February 6. The next edition of the Twenty20 league will be held from April 9 to May 29.
"I am very happy with the players that we have been able to fix today as they are amongst the best in the sport. Being a new team, we will inject new ideas and hopefully add lots of excitement to the upcoming season," said Keshav Bansal, owner of Rajkot franchise and director of Intex Technologies. For the 2016 league, the total salary purse available to the teams is Rs 66 crore, Rs 3 crore more than that of 2015.