India great condemns Sunrisers Leeds for 'wrong' signing of Pakistan spinner
Abrar Ahmed signed for Leeds last week - amid fears about Pakistani players being frozen out of Hundred franchises with Indian ownership
Sunil Gavaskar has condemned Indian-owned Sunrisers Leeds for signing Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed, claiming it “indirectly contributes to the deaths of Indian soldiers and civilians”.
Fears over a ‘shadow ban’ for Pakistan players from the Indian Premier League affiliated franchises in The Hundred were allayed when Sunrisers paid £190,000 to acquire Abrar at last Thursday’s auction.
Men’s head coach Daniel Vettori insisted he had no orders to avoid signing certain individuals despite Pakistan players being frozen out of the IPL since 2009 amid geopolitical tensions with India.
But Sunrisers, owned by Sun Group which also owns IPL side Sunrisers Hyderabad, received scathing criticism online which was followed by their X account being suspended on the night of the auction.
India great Gavaskar, a 1983 World Cup winner and the first person to reach 10,000 Test runs, was withering in his critique of the Abrar purchase in his column for Indian newspaper Mid-Day.
“The furore created by the acquisition of a Pakistani player by the Indian owner of a franchise in The Hundred is hardly surprising,” Gavaskar wrote.
“Ever since the Mumbai attacks in November 2008, Indian franchise owners have simply ignored Pakistani players for the IPL.
“Although belated, the realisation that the fees that they pay to a Pakistani player, who then pays income tax to his government which buys arms and weapons, indirectly contributes to the deaths of Indian soldiers and civilians is making Indian entities refrain from even considering having Pakistani artistes and sportspersons.
“Whether it is an Indian entity or an overseas subsidiary of the entity that is making the payment, if the owner is Indian then he or she is contributing to the Indian casualties. It’s as simple as that.
“Surely the owner should have had an understanding of the situation and discouraged the purchase. Is winning a tournament in a format that no other country plays in much more important than Indian lives?
“There’s still time to undo the wrong and hopefully wiser counsels will prevail.”
The Press Association has contacted Sunrisers Leeds for comment.