Sunrisers Hyderabad’s co-owner Kavya Maran’s new team Sunrisers Leeds has created a stir on social media by selecting Pakistani player Abrar Ahmed in The Hundred Auction 2026. People are angry as to why an Indian owned team bought a Pakistani player. Due to tension between India and Pakistan, Pakistani players have not played in IPL since 2009, hence fans are strongly criticizing this decision of Kavya Maran and her team.
Sunrisers Leeds have included 27-year-old leg spinner Abrar Ahmed in their team for 1,90,000 pounds (about more than Rs 2 crore). Apart from these, another Pakistani player Usman Tariq was bought by Birmingham Phoenix for 1,40,000 pounds. However, Pakistan’s star bowler Haris Rauf was not bought by anyone and remained unsold, while Shaheen Shah Afridi had withdrawn his name before the auction. Among women players, Fatima Sana and Sadia Iqbal also did not find any buyer.
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Even before the auction, there was discussion that the teams associated with IPL might not buy Pakistani players. But the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and all the teams together issued a statement. He had clearly said that the players will be selected only according to their game, ability and the need of the team. This decision of Sunrisers Leeds has also been taken under this policy.
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Some more special things about the auction
In this auction, England’s uncapped player James Cole was bought by London Spirit for a huge price of 3,90,000 pounds. With this, Welsh Fire spent a total of 5,40,000 pounds on the pair of Joe Root and Jordan Cox. This new season of The Hundred is going to start from 21st July 2026 and it will run for four weeks.
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