New Delhi: Sunrisers Leeds’ signing of Pakistani spinner Abrar Ahmed for The Hundred has sparked online controversy, but the BCCI has distanced itself through its vice-president Rajeev Shukla. The Sun Group-owned franchise, which also runs Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL, bought Abrar for 190,000 GBP (roughly Rs 2.34 crore) during Thursday’s auction after bidding with Trent Rockets. The tournament will be played from July 21 to August 16.
BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla clarified that the Indian board does not control decisions made in overseas leagues. “It has nothing to do with us. This is not IPL. What happens in The Hundred or other foreign leagues, we have nothing to do with it,” Shukla told PTI.Abrar’s signing sparked a backlash on social media, and the Sunrisers Leeds X account was briefly suspended. The reaction reflects the prolonged absence of Pakistani players from the IPL since 2009, when deteriorating diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan effectively ended their participation in the league.Sunrisers Leeds came under the control of the Sun Group last year when it bought a 49 per cent stake from the England and Wales Cricket Board and the remaining 51 per cent from Yorkshire for around GBP 100 million. Sunrisers CEO Kavya Maran attended the auction.Interestingly, Abrar was not the only Pakistani player in the auction. Mystery Spinner Usman Tariq He was previously bought by Birmingham Phoenix for 140,000 GBP, although the team has no IPL links.Despite the IPL ban, Pakistani players still feature in overseas leagues for teams affiliated to IPL owners. Recently, several Pakistani cricketers have played for Indian-owned or co-owned franchises in T20 leagues abroad.Imad Wasim featured for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in the ILT20 in 2023–24 and later for Seattle Orcas in Major League Cricket in 2024 and 2025, a team co-owned by GMR Group of Delhi Capitals. Zaman Khan also played for Seattle Arcas in MLC 2024. In the same year, Mohammad Amir and Usman Tariq played in the CPL for Trinbago Knight Riders, a franchise owned by Kolkata Knight Riders.
