The Hundred auction: India-owned Sunrisers Leeds sign Pakistan’s Abrar Ahmed for £190,000

In the inaugural men’s auction of The Hundred, Sunrisers Leeds signed Pakistan leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed for £190,000 (around Rs 2.3 crore) on Thursday, making him the first Pakistani international to be signed by an Indian-owned franchise in the tournament.

Abrar, who entered the auction with a base price of £75,000, was secured by Sunrisers Leeds after the franchise prevailed in a bidding contest with Trent Rockets shortly before the lunch break.

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Sunrisers Leeds is owned by Indian media conglomerate Sun TV Network, which recently completed its acquisition of the franchise previously known as Northern Superchargers. The group bought a 49 per cent stake from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the remaining 51 per cent from Yorkshire County Cricket Club in a deal worth about £100 million.

Sun TV also owns Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League and Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the SA20.

Earlier reports had suggested that teams owned by IPL franchises might avoid bidding for Pakistani players. The early stages of Thursday’s auction seemed to support that expectation until Abrar’s signing.

No Pakistani player has featured in the IPL since 2009, and IPL franchise owners who operate teams in T20 leagues across the world have generally avoided signing players from the country.

The ECB had previously stated that selections in the auction would be based solely on “cricketing performance, availability and the needs of each team.”

Abrar was the second Pakistani player sold in the auction after Usman Tariq was bought by Birmingham Phoenix for £140,000. However, several other Pakistan players, including Saim Ayub, Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan, went unsold.

Sunrisers Leeds, captained by Harry Brook and coached by Daniel Vettori, also signed Ryan Rickelton, Zak Crawley, Matt Potts and Dan Lawrence during the early stages of the auction.

The squad already features players such as Brydon Carse, Mitchell Marsh and Nathan Ellis.

The 2026 edition of The Hundred will be held from July 21 to August 16, featuring 34 men’s and 34 women’s matches.