Boycott SRH trends as Sunrisers Leeds sign Pakistan’s spinner in Hundred auction

Pakistan mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed was signed by Sunrisers Leeds during the The Hundred player auction on Thursday, becoming the first Pakistan cricketer to be picked by an Indian-owned franchise in the competition. The team, owned by India’s Sun Group , secured the services of the spinner for GBP 190,000 (approximately ₹2.34 crore) after a bidding contest with Trent Rockets.

The development is notable as franchises linked to the Indian Premier League have generally refrained from signing Pakistan players in overseas leagues as well, reflecting the prolonged absence of Pakistan cricketers from the IPL since 2009 amid strained diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan . Abrar’s signing, therefore, marks a rare instance of an Indian-owned team contracting a Pakistan player in a major franchise tournament.

Sunrisers Leeds is the rebranded franchise after Sun Group completed a full takeover of Northern Superchargers , purchasing 49 per cent stake from the ECB and the remaining 51 per cent from Yorkshire County Club for around GBP 100 million last year. The group also owns Sunrisers Hyderabad and Sunrisers Eastern Cape . Notably, Sunrisers Eastern Cape currently does not have any Pakistan players in its squad.

The bidding process at the auction was overseen by Kavya Maran , who represented the franchise during the proceedings. The 2026 season of The Hundred is scheduled to run from July 21 to August 16 .

As news of the signing broke, hashtags such as #ShameOnSRH and #BoycottSunrisers began trending on social media platform X. Several users criticised the franchise owners, alleging that awarding a lucrative contract to Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed overlooked prevailing national sentiment. Some critics also claimed that the player had earlier made remarks perceived as disparaging towards Indian security forces, though the franchise has not issued any official response to the online backlash so far.

Abrar was the second Pakistan cricketer to be sold in the auction . Fellow mystery spinner Usman Tariq was picked by Birmingham Phoenix for GBP 140,000 (around ₹1.72 crore). However, Phoenix has no IPL ownership link.

Several other Pakistan players failed to attract bids. Fast bowler Haris Rauf , all-rounder Saim Ayub , and spinner Shadab Khan went unsold, while star pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi had earlier withdrawn from the auction.

In the women’s competition held a day earlier, Pakistan players Fatima Sana and Sadia Iqbal also remained unsold.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman was acquired by Birmingham Phoenix for GBP 100,000 (around ₹1.23 crore) . Rahman had earlier been released by Kolkata Knight Riders following directions from the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

Among domestic players, Sussex all-rounder James Coles attracted the highest bid of the auction , joining London Spirit for GBP 390,000 (approximately ₹4.8 crore).