New Delhi: After Kavya Maran’s franchise Sunrisers Leeds bought Pakistan leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed for 190,000 pounds (Rs 2.3 crore) on Thursday in the inaugural men’s Hundred auction, the decision drew backlash from many Indian supporters on social media.
Abrar became the first Pakistani international signed by an Indian-owned franchise in the tournament.
“Leeds acquired Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed for £190k. Abrar was literally used to mock India with the having tea picture and used to mock Indian players with unwanted celebrations in Asia Cup. Shame on you SRH,” an X user write on X.
The purchase for Abrar, who came with a base price of 75,000 pounds, came after Sunrisers Leeds, owned by Indian media group Sun TV, prevailed in a bidding contest with Trent Rockets at the auction shortly before the lunch break happened.
Sun TV completed its acquisition of the franchise previously known as Northern Superchargers by buying a 49 percent stake from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the remaining 51 percent from Yorkshire for about 100 million pounds.
“Sunriser Leeds picked Abrar Ahmed for £1,90,000. He is the same Abrar Ahmed, who never gets tired of mocking Indians with that Tea Cup gesture. I don’t know what to say but one thing is clear all agenda & propoganda of British media against Indian owners was baseless!”
The conglomerate also runs Sunrisers Hyderabad (IPL) and Sunrisers Eastern Cape (SA20) teams. Earlier reports suggested IPL franchise-owned teams would avoid bidding for Pakistan players, and the early stages of Thursday’s auction appeared to support that expectation till Abrar was picked.
No Pakistan player has featured in the Indian Premier League (IPL) since 2009, and IPL franchise owners who have invested in franchise T20 leagues worldwide have generally avoided signing cricketers from the country.
The ECB said last month that selections in the auction would be based solely on ‘cricketing performance, availability, and the needs of each team.’ Nine Pakistan players have appeared across the competition’s first five seasons, though none of the female cricketers from the country were picked in the women’s auction on Wednesday.
“Playing against is totally different from paying the players who mocked India during Operation Sindoor,” an ‘X’ user wrote on X.
“What’s the point of outrage on this when BCCI has played against the same player 3 consecutive times in the last Asia Cup which happened immediately after Operation Sindoor? Also, the team isn’t owned by SRK so it will be forgotten as well,” another X user wrote.
Abrar was the second Pakistan player sold in the auction on Thursday morning after mystery spinner Usman Tariq was bought by Birmingham Phoenix for 140,000 pounds. Several other Pakistan players like Saim Ayub, Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan, went unsold.
Sunrisers Leeds, captained by Harry Brook and coached by Daniel Vettori, also picked up South Africa’s Ryan Rickelton, England’s Zak Crawley, Matt Potts and Dan Lawrence in the early stages of the auction. The squad already includes Brydon Carse, Mitchell Marsh and Nathan Ellis. The 2026 Hundred will run from July 21 to August 16 and will feature 34 men’s and 34 women’s matches.
(IANS)
