The vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, Rajeev Shukla, stated on Friday that the BCCI cannot get involved in the controversy surrounding the signing of Pakistani spinner Abrar Ahmed by Sunrisers Leeds in The Hundred auction because the signing is related to a foreign league and it is up to the franchise to make the decision.
“It is not in our domain (IPL), they have done it for some foreign league. They will have to take a call; we cannot do anything,” Shukla told ANI.
Ahmed, a Pakistani leg-spinner, became the first player from Pakistan to be signed by an Indian-owned side in the competition after Sunrisers Leeds purchased him for 190,000 pounds (about Rs 2.34 crore) at the first men’s Hundred auction in London.
Kavya Maran, a co-owner of Sunrisers Leeds, has faced severe backlash on social media as a result of the signing. Critics have cited comments made by the 27-year-old spinner that allegedly made fun of the Indian Armed Forces in the run-up to Operation Sindoor in May of last year.
The franchise, once known as Northern Superchargers, was fully acquired by Indian media giant Sun TV last year. For over £100 million, the group purchased a 51% share from Yorkshire and a 49% share from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
No active Pakistani player has ever been signed by Sunrisers, whose sisters franchises are Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL and Sunrisers Eastern Cape in SA20. Just before lunch, the Leeds-based team secured Abrar after winning a bidding fight with Trent Rockets.
Despite the eight teams’ pledge to make selections based on “performance, availability, and the needs of each team,” the auction raised questions about whether the four IPL-owned franchises would bid for Pakistani players amid rumors of a potential “shadow-ban.”
After Usman Tariq, who was acquired by Birmingham Phoenix for £140,000 (US$187,000), Ahmed was the second Pakistani player to be sold at auction. Along with American investment organizations, the host counties of Nottinghamshire and Warwickshire, respectively, co-own Trent Rockets and Phoenix.
Due to the ongoing geopolitical difficulties between India and Pakistan, no active Pakistani international has participated in the IPL since the 2009 edition. However, Pakistani players have played for a number of international T20 teams that are either owned or partially owned by IPL clubs.
