Happy to have a strong playing XI: Goenka

The new franchise, which had picked up MS Dhoni, Ajinkya Rahane, Steve Smith, Faf du Plessis and R Ashwin through IPL draft, mixed caution with aggression to net the flamboyant Kevin Pietersen, Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh, Indian pacers Ishant Sharma and Irfan Pathan and Sri Lankan all-rounder Thisara Perera apart from others.

"Our focus was on having a strong playing XI, and I think, we have that in place," said Goenka who chose not to be at the bidding table but monitored the process from Kolkata.

"If you look at our squad, it is batting heavy with a lot of specialists in the line-up," Goenka said.

Asked how much homework his team had done before the auction, Goenka said, "We spent a lot of time discussing what we wanted. And I must thank Mahi (Dhoni) and Stephen for drawing up various permutations and combinations for every position in the line-up. Overall, I am quite happy with our squad."

Asked whether there was any particular player he would have liked to see in his side, Goenka revealed, "We were very keen to have Pawan Negi, but then, you can't always have it your way in an open auction. We have a balanced squad and the good thing is all the players would be available for the entire tournament. It should work to our advantage."