Pakistani cricketers could lose their contracts with franchises owned by Indian Premier League teams in the upcoming season of The Hundred, with reports suggesting that the teams have decided not to consider them in next month’s player auction.
The upcoming season of The Hundred, which is scheduled to run from July 21 to August 16, will see a significant increase in player salaries following private investment in the tournament. However, Pakistani cricketers are unlikely to benefit from the financial windfall as they have not been employed by franchises since the IPL since 2009 due to strained diplomatic relations between the two neighboring countries.
“A senior official from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has informed the agent that interest in its Pakistan players will be limited to non-IPL-affiliated sides,” the BBC said in a report on Thursday.
The Hundred is an eight-franchise tournament with Manchester Super Giants, MI LondonSouthern Brave and Sunrisers Leeds among the teams that are at least partially owned by entities that also control franchises in the IPL.
“Another agent described the situation as an ‘unwritten rule’ across T20 leagues with Indian investment,” the report added.
Last year Richard Gould, the ECB’s chief executive, reportedly said he expected “players from all nations to be selected for all teams” in The Hundred, while stressing that the organizers had put in place a “clear anti-discrimination policy” to ensure fairness.
The report further stated that the owners of the four franchises were approached for comment, but none responded.
“The 100 welcomes men’s and women’s players from all over the world and we would expect this to reflect all eight teams,” an ECB spokesman said.
“Nearly 1,000 cricketers from 18 countries have registered for The Hundred, with more than 50 players from Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan and the West Indies represented on the longlist.”
The report states that Imad Wasim represented Northern Superchargers, who were rechristened Sunrisers Leeds, last season. Several other Pakistani players, including Mohammad Amir, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan and Haris Rauf, have featured in The Hundred, but no Pakistani female cricketer has yet appeared in the competition.
It is pertinent to note that no Pakistani cricketer has featured in the SA20 since its launch in 2023, with all six teams owned by IPL-affiliated franchise groups.
Similarly, in the ILT20 in the UAE, franchises controlled by the owners of MI London and Southern Brave have not signed a single Pakistani player in four seasons.
“Every player should have the right to fair and equal opportunities,” the report quoted Tom Moffat, chief executive of the World Cricketers’ Association, the global players’ union, as saying. “Employers have the autonomy to hire, but these decisions should always be based on the principles of fairness, equality and respect.”
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Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
February 19, 2026