Pakistani cricketers, including Saim Ayub, Usman Tariq, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, and Haris Rauf have registered for the 950-plus player pool for next month’s The Hundred auctions.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) faces scrutiny over whether new Indian investors could impose an IPL-style “shadow ban” on Pakistani players.
No current Pakistani international has played in the IPL since 2008, and only a few have joined foreign teams linked to IPL owners.
Last year, ECB chief executive Richard Gould insisted that the involvement of Pakistani players in The Hundred would remain unaffected by the league’s partial privatisation, with four franchises now either part-owned or fully run by IPL ownership groups.
However, recent reports indicate that no IPL-owned Hundred teams intend to bid for Pakistani players in the upcoming auctions, citing messages from a “senior ECB official” to an agent.
The ECB has pushed back against the claims, saying it has not been shown the messages in question.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan urged the ECB to address the issue proactively, tweeting: “The ECB need to act fast on this… the most inclusive sport in the country should not allow this to happen.”
Over 50 Pakistani players, including Afridi, Shadab, Rauf, Saim Ayub and Usman Tariq, have registered for the draft, which will be held at Piccadilly, London, on March 11 (women’s) and March 12 (men’s).
Notably absent from the longlist are Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, though their availability would have been limited by Pakistan’s scheduled Test series against West Indies in August.
Pakistan’s limited-overs teams are not due to play during The Hundred’s window from July 21 to August 16.
Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman, whose contract with Kolkata Knight Riders was recently cancelled at the BCCI’s request, has also registered for the auction.
Historically, only nine Pakistani players have featured in the first five seasons of The Hundred, with teams often reluctant to sign them due to clashes with international fixtures and a few high-profile withdrawals, including Afridi and Naseem Shah in 2024.
Four IPL franchises are now involved in The Hundred as part-owners or full owners: Mumbai Indians (MI London), Lucknow Super Giants (Manchester Super Giants), Sunrisers Hyderabad (Sunrisers Leeds), and Delhi Capitals (Southern Brave).
Teams co-owned by Delhi Capitals and Southern Brave’s GMR Group have previously signed Pakistani players, including Imad Wasim, Zaman Khan, and Shan Masood, while the other three franchises have never signed Pakistan nationals.
Geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan escalated last year, and their recent group-stage T20 World Cup match was nearly cancelled after Pakistan threatened to boycott the fixture.
An ECB spokesperson emphasised its commitment to diversity and global talent in the upcoming tournament. Highlighting the international reach of the competition.
“The Hundred welcomes men’s and women’s players from all over the world, and we would expect the eight teams to reflect that. Almost 1,000 cricketers from 18 nations have registered for The Hundred auction, with representation from Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan and West Indies.”
Birmingham Phoenix has also expressed openness to signing overseas players regardless of nationality.
James Thomas, the franchise’s performance director, said: “Birmingham is a hugely diverse city. We pick players for what they bring on the field, but we also want teams that represent the city and region.”
High-profile England players such as Jonny Bairstow, Adil Rashid, Joe Root (men’s), and Tammy Beaumont, Dani Gibson, Linsey Smith (women’s) are on the longlist, though Ben Stokes is absent due to workload management.
Overseas stars Sophie Devine, Beth Mooney, Deepti Sharma, Trent Boult, Aiden Markram, and Sunil Narine are also in contention, while most of Australia’s men’s Test squad are unavailable due to their home series against Bangladesh in August.
The Hundred auctions will start with a marquee set of “hero” players nominated by the eight franchises, all of which have made up to four pre-auction signings.
Salary caps for 2026 have risen to £2.05 million (men’s) and £880,000 (women’s), and teams may field four overseas players per match, up from three in previous seasons.
