Former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi waded into the controversy surrounding SunRisers Leeds signing Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed for The Hundred and offered his services to the ownership group to help manage the fallout.
“2.34 million investment in Pakistani player when the fans are already on edge? I know a thing or two about managing optics and building an empire. Call me,” Modi said in a video posted on his X handle.
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The signing has attracted considerable backlash, with SunRisers Leeds, part of the Kavya Maran-led SunRisers Hyderabad ownership group, facing criticism from several quarters in India.
ECB ENTERS
Before the auction even took place, The England and Wales Cricket Board wrote to all eight hundred franchiseswhich will remind them of their responsibility for a fair selection and anti-discrimination policy.
The intervention followed reports that four IPL-affiliated franchises in The Hundred, namely Manchester Super Giants, MI London, Southern Brave and SunRisers Leeds, may be reluctant to pick Pakistani players. With over 60 Pakistani cricketers registered for the 2026 draft, the news prompted immediate scrutiny from the governing body. The ECB has made it clear that while it cannot dictate who must sign the franchise, the selection decision must not cross regulatory boundaries.
GAVASKAR LEADS CRITICISM
Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar was the most vocal critic of the signingusing his Polednice column to make a sharp argument that goes far beyond cricket.
Gavaskar claimed that the fees paid to Pakistani players would eventually go to the Pakistani government through income tax. This money, he argued, is then used to fund arms and weapons purchases, with the end result being the deaths of Indian soldiers and civilians. He was clear that this logic applied irrespective of whether the check was being written by an Indian entity or a foreign subsidiary.
“The uproar created by an Indian franchise owner acquiring a Pakistani player in The Hundred is hardly surprising. Ever since the Mumbai attacks in November 2008, Indian franchise owners have simply ignored Pakistani players for the IPL,” Gavaskar wrote.
This argument raises a vexing question for franchise owners with Indian ties operating in overseas leagues. If the money flows the same regardless of geography, does the signature change at all?
It’s a debate now at the intersection of cricket, geopolitics and finance, and one that SunRisers Leeds are at the center of for now.
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Issued by:
Amar Panicker
Published on:
18 March 2026 15:11 IST
