The inaugural auction of The Hundred private era on 12 March 2026 was expected to be a celebratory milestone for the ECB. Instead, it created a fierce geopolitical controversy in India. SunRisers Leeds, the Sun Group-owned franchise and IPL-affiliated SunRisers Hyderabad, have created a storm on social media after winning a bidding war for Pakistan all-rounder Abrar Ahmed.
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Signature worth £190,000 (Rs 2.34 crore approx), is a landmark event. This is the first time in many years that an Indian-owned franchise has actively recruited a Pakistani international partner. While the move was hailed as a victory for meritocracy in the UK, it drew a backlash from Indian fans, many of whom called for a boycott of the SunRisers brand.
The Hundred, an eight-team tournament, will be played in the UK from 21 July to 16 August.
The main reason for the outrage is a series of controversial social media posts allegedly made by Abrar Ahmed in mid-2025. Following a period of heightened cross-border tensions, Abrar allegedly shared content that Indian fans say mocked the Indian armed forces.
When news of the signing broke, hashtags like #ShameOnSRH and #BoycottSunrisers started trending on X. Critics argued that by handing a lucrative contract to a player who had publicly disparaged Indian security forces, the franchise owners were ignoring national sentiment for tactical gain.
Some even called out the face of the SunRisers brand, Kaavya Maran, for aggressively bidding for Abrar Ahmed in Thursday’s auction in London.
“For years, Indian teams avoided Pakistani players out of respect for national sentiment. But the moment money and foreign leagues come into play, that backbone disappears. Indian owner, Indian brand, zero national backbone. Stop pretending to represent India if profit matters more than country,” wrote user X. Screengrab from X Screengrab from X
INDIAN TEAM WILL BUY PAK SPINNER
The signing comes after months of speculation that the four Indian teams in The Hundred – SunRisers Leeds, MI London, Manchester Super Giants and Southern Brave – would enforce the unwritten rule of bypassing Pakistani talent. This trend has been seen in the SA20 in South Africa and the ILT20 in the United Arab Emirates, where teams owned by IPL owners have historically never signed a Pakistani cricketer.
On the eve of the auction, the ECB reportedly issued a stern warning to all eight directors of cricket, reminding them that excluding players based on nationality would breach UK anti-discrimination laws. While headliners like Haris Rauf, Shadab Khan and Saim Ayub went unsold in the opening round of Thursday’s auction, SunRisers Leeds CEO Kavya Maran surprised observers by aggressively outbidding Trent Rockets to land Abrar.
Notably, this is the first season in The Hundred’s six-year history to feature Indian owners, following the league’s privatization last year, which attracted several Indian investors.
MUSTAFIZUR DESTINY OPENS UP?
Speculation has already been rife on social media over whether SunRisers Leeds will be forced to rescind Abrar Ahmed’s contract following the backlash. A section of users on X pointed out the recent a precedent involving Mustafizur Rahman and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). In January 2026, despite buying the Bangladeshi pacer for Rs 9.20 crore in the IPL 2026 auction, KKR was ordered by the BCCI to terminate his contract.
The move followed heavy pressure from what critics described as fringe political groups in India following reports of targeted violence against Hindus in Bangladesh. While SunRisers Leeds operate under the ECB’s jurisdiction, many fear the same commercial and political pressures that forced Mustafizur out could now target Abrar.
From a purely cricketing perspective, the move, spearheaded by head coach Daniel Vettori, is a masterstroke. Abrar has become one of the most feared white-ball spinners in the world, taking 52 wickets in his last 38 T20Is at an extraordinary economy of 6.67.
SunRisers Leeds officials claimed that selection was based solely on cricketing merit and squad requirements. By signing Abrar, they have effectively dismantled the shadow ban narrative, although they now face the difficult task of managing a PR crisis in their primary commercial market of India.
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Issued by:
Akshay Ramesh
Published on:
12 March 2026 21:58 IST
