SunRisers Leeds bought Abrar Ahmed in the Sto 2026 auction on Thursday 12th March. The SunRisers franchise, owned by the Sun Group – an Indian conglomerate led by Kalanithi Maran – went for the Pakistani spinner and eventually secured him for £190,000 (approximately Rs 234). Kavya Maran, who serves as a key figure and CEO of the franchise, was present at the auction table.
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Kavya, along with head coach Daniel Vettori, were at the auction table at Piccadilly Lights in London on Thursday as SunRisers Leeds outbid Trent Rockets to sign Abrar Ahmed. SunRisers Leeds will be led by England T20I captain Harry Brook.
It was the first time in many years that a team with ties to the Indian Premier League (IPL) signed a Pakistani cricketer.
Four of The Hundred’s eight franchises – Manchester Super Giants, MI London, Southern Brave and SunRisers Leeds – are now at least partly owned by the companies that control the IPL teams.
Earlier in the day Pakistan’s Usman Tariq, The the mysterious off-spinner who created a flutter in the T20 World Cup 2026was bought by Birmingham Phoenix for £140,000.
After making his Pakistan debut in 2022, Abrar Ahmed was initially named as a Test specialist. However, since his T20I debut in 2024, Abrar has taken 52 wickets in 38 matches, boasting a sensational average of 17.36 and an excellent economy rate of 6.67. He also took six wickets in four matches during Pakistan’s campaign at the ICC Men’s Under-20 World Cup last month.
HOW MANY PLAYERS THEN IN ONE HUNDRED AUCTIONS?
As many as 14 Pakistani players have been shortlisted for the Hundred 2026 auction. On the eve of the auction, ODI captain Shaheen Afridi pulled out but 13 players were set to go under the hammer.
Not selected for the 2026 T20 World Cup campaign, Big Bash League star Haris Rauf went unsold along with all-rounder Saim Ayub.
DID THE INDIAN OWNERS NOT BUY PAK PLAYERS?
Stovka faced a defining test of its integrity following a massive change in ownership. The competition entered the “private era” for the first time after the ECB sold stakes in its franchises – mainly to the owners of the Indian Premier League (IPL) – last year, sparking widespread fears that Pakistan’s top cricketers would be systematically excluded from the league.
The controversy stems from the sale of four key franchises in 2025 to Indian conglomerates: Sunrisers Leeds (Sunrisers Hyderabad), MI London (Mumbai Indians), Manchester Super Giants (Lucknow Super Giants) and Southern Brave (GMR/Delhi Capitals).
The anxiety among players and fans was rooted in a consistent global pattern. Pakistanis have been banned from the IPL since the 2008 Mumbai attacks. When the same owners expanded into the SA20 in South Africa and the ILT20 in the UAE, an unwritten rule followed; not a single Pakistani player has ever been signed by an IPL-owned franchise in these leagues.
Before the 2026 auction reports from the BBC suggested a similar shadow ban was imminent in Englandwith a senior official reportedly warning agents that interest in the Pakistani would be limited to four teams not affiliated with the IPL. This led to immediate intervention by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), which issued a formal warning to all ownersthat selection must be based purely on merit with reference to the UK’s strict anti-discrimination laws.
In a major move to silence critics, Sunrisers Leeds have backed those words with action by signing Abrar Ahmed. The signing is seen as a watershed moment that can break the IPL gridlock that has dictated global franchise politics for years.
While the women’s auction earlier this week saw world number one bowler Sadia Iqbal go unsold, raising fresh questions, the men’s proposal suggests the ECB’s firm stance may have successfully protected the tournament’s diversity in its first year of private ownership.
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Issued by:
Akshay Ramesh
Published on:
12 March 2026 18:55 IST
