A big controversy has come to light after the player auction of England’s famous T20 league The Hundred. Indian-owned franchise Sunrisers Leeds included Pakistan’s mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed in its team. After which sharp reactions were seen on social media. Not only this, just a few hours after purchasing the player, the team’s official X (earlier Twitter) account has also been suspended.
Bid placed on Abrar Ahmed in auction
In the men’s player auction of The Hundred, Sunrisers Leads bought Abrar Ahmed for 2.55 lakh US dollars (about more than Rs 2 crore). During this bid the team left Trent Rockets behind. With this signing, Abrar Ahmed has become the first Pakistani player to join an Indian-owned team.
Team owner Kavya Maran and head coach Daniel Vettori were also present during the auction. According to the report, before the auction there was a lot of discussion on whether the Indian-owned teams of The Hundred would bid on Pakistani players or not. However, the franchise clearly said that the player has been selected only on the basis of his performance, availability and the need of the team.
Fans’ anger on social media
After the inclusion of Abrar Ahmed in the team, many cricket fans in India expressed their displeasure on social media. Some people criticized the franchise and its owner Kavya Maran, saying that signing a Pakistani player is not the right decision amid the strained relations between India and Pakistan.
It is noteworthy that no Pakistani player has participated in IPL since 2008. Due to political tension between the two countries, IPL teams had stopped signing Pakistani players.
Discussion increased due to suspension of X account
Amidst this entire controversy, the official When users try to open that account, the message “Account Suspended” appears. However, it has not yet been clarified by the platform as to why the account has been suspended.
Sun Group owns it
Sunrisers Leads is owned by Indian media company Sun Group. Last year, this company had acquired complete control over the team by purchasing the franchise stake from England and Wales Cricket Board and Yorkshire. The same group also owns IPL team Sunrisers Hyderabad and SA20 League team Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
Other Pakistani players sold in auction
Apart from Abrar Ahmed, Pakistan’s spinner Usman Tariq has also been bought in this auction of The Hundred. Birmingham Phoenix has included him in their team for US$ 1.87 lakh.
What did coach Daniel Vettori say
Team coach Daniel Vettori said that before signing Abrar Ahmed, he had consulted the Australian players and coaching staff. Only after his opinion the team decided to buy this spinner. He also said that there was no specific discussion within the franchise about taking Pakistani players or not.
