Pakistan's Abrar signed by IPL-linked Sunrisers

Spinner Abrar Ahmed has won 63 caps for Pakistan across formats

Spinner Abrar Ahmed was bought by Sunrisers Leeds in the men's Hundred auction to allay concerns that Pakistan players would be ignored by franchises affiliated to the Indian Premier League.

BBC Sport reported in February that the four Hundred franchises linked to the IPL would not consider Pakistan players, mirroring a ban that has been in place in India since 2009.

Abrar, 27, was bought for £190,000 by Leeds, the franchise entirely controlled by the owners of Sunrisers Hyderabad and based at Headingley.

Elsewhere, uncapped 21-year-old James Coles outstripped more established names to fetch £390,000, the biggest price of the auction. The Sussex spin-bowling all-rounder was signed by Lord's-based London Spirit.

The huge fee commanded by Coles was a further sign of the new financial might of the Hundred, after stakes in all eight teams were sold to investors last year.

The auctions, which began on Wednesday for the women's tournament, are the first auctions held in a major British sport.

At 16, Coles became the youngest man to play first-class cricket for Sussex. He has spent the winter playing for Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the South Africa T20 and made his debut for England Lions. His salary for the 2026 edition of the Hundred is almost a 13-fold increase on the £31,000 he earned playing for Southern Brave in 2025.

Other significant moves included leg-spinner Adil Rashid joining Southern Brave for £250,000 and Joe Root moving to Welsh Fire for £240,000 in the first sale of the day. Fire also spent £300,000 on England white-ball batter Jordan Cox.

After the reports that the IPL-linked Hundred teams would ignore players from Pakistan, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) wrote to all eight franchises to remind them of their responsibilities around anti-discrimination.

The ECB and the eight teams subsequently released a joint statement saying "players must not be excluded on the grounds of nationality".

Hundred coaches 'not told to avoid Pakistan players'

IPL-linked teams 'not considering Pakistan players'

Neither of the two Pakistan internationals in the women's auction were bought on Wednesday, after which coaches of Hundred teams linked to IPL franchises told BBC Sport they had not been instructed to avoid Pakistan players.

There are 13 Pakistan players in the men's auction after pace bowler Shaheen Afridi withdrew.

None of Haris Rauf, Shadab Khan or Saim Ayub attracted bids when they were made available for sale on Thursday morning, though they could re-enter the auction later in the day.

Spinner Usman Tariq, a star of the recent T20 World Cup, was the subject of bids from Birmingham Phoenix and Trent Rockets - two franchises not affiliated to the IPL. Tariq was eventually bought by Phoenix for £140,000.

In the final sale of the morning, Abrar received bids from Sunrisers and the Rockets after entering at a base price of £75,000.

After securing Abrar's signature, Sunrisers posted on X: "Abrar at Headingley, soon."

The auctions are the latest stage in the revamp of the Hundred after the sales of stakes in the eight teams last year.

Collectively, the franchises are investing just over £7m in salaries each year in the women's competition, and more the £16m per year in the men's tournament.

For some owners, entry into the Hundred is a further boost to their portfolio of teams in franchise leagues across the world, while all investors are looking for a return on their outlay through commercial deals, ticket sales and TV rights.

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