Abrar Ahmed was roped in by the franchise – which is also in charge of the IPL side Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and the Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the SA20 – for 190,000 GBP (approx. Rs 2.34 crore) during Sunday’s auction in London
From the time Pakistan’s Abrar Ahmed was picked in The Hundred auction by the Indian-owned franchise SunRisers Leeds, the backlash has been massive. Abrar was roped in by the franchise – which is also in charge of the IPL side Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and the Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the SA20 – for 190,000 GBP (approx. Rs 2.34 crore) during Sunday’s auction in London. However, ultimately, Abrar may not even get to play for SunRisers due to international commitments. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) may not give him a No Objection Certificate (NOC) as the Pakistan team is scheduled to tour the West Indies during The Hundred window. Pakistan are set to tour the West Indies from July 15 to August 7 for a two-Test series. The Hundred begins on July 21 and will run until August 16.
“He might not play The Hundred, given the fact that Pakistan is playing a two-match Test series against West Indies,” a TOI report quoted a source as saying.
“It is a lot of money. His agent has put his name in the auction, which means he is confident of getting the NOC. He is also among the few current Pakistani cricketers who have a good relationship with the PCB chief. The chances of him playing in The Hundred are 50-50.”
SunRisers Leeds head coach Daniel Vettori explained that the team signed Abrar Ahmed due to a lack of quality spin options, especially after missing out on England’s Adil Rashid. Abrar, currently the third-ranked T20I bowler, was seen as a valuable addition.
“After we missed out on Adil Rashid, the priority was to get a spin bowler, and we didn’t think that quality was in the local market, so we had to jump overseas. Rishad Hussain, Usman Tariq, and Abrar Ahmed – they were all guys that were on our radar,” said Vettori, who was at the auction table alongside co-owner Kavya Maran.