Sunrisers Leeds’ official X (formerly Twitter) account was suspended on Thursday, just hours after the franchise signed Pakistan leg spinner Abrar Ahmed for £190,000 at the inaugural Men’s Hundred auction on March 12, 2026.
The suspension came amid intense backlash from Indian fans who were furious at an Indian owned franchise recruiting a Pakistani cricketer during a period of heightened political tensions between the two nations.
Why Was the Sunrisers Leeds X Account Suspended
The platform has not provided any official explanation for the suspension. Users attempting to access the account were shown a standard message stating that X suspends accounts that violate its rules.
The timing of the suspension raised eyebrows, given that it followed a wave of online outrage from Indian cricket fans. Hashtags calling for a boycott of sister franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL were trending on the platform shortly before the account went down.
Abrar became the first Pakistan cricketer to join an Indian owned franchise in The Hundred’s history. The Sun Group, which owns Sunrisers Leeds, also controls IPL side Sunrisers Hyderabad, making co-owner Kavya Maran a direct target of fan anger on social media.
Pakistan Players Face Mixed Fortunes at The Hundred Auction
While Abrar secured a deal, several of his compatriots were not as fortunate. Haris Rauf, Shadab Khan, and Saim Ayub all went unsold during the auction. Shaheen Shah Afridi had already withdrawn from the process before bidding began.
The only other Pakistan player to find a buyer was mystery spinner Usman Tariq, who was picked up by Birmingham Phoenix for £140,000. Notably, Phoenix has no IPL ownership connection.
In the women’s auction held a day earlier, both Pakistan players in the pool, Fatima Sana and Sadia Iqbal, went unsold as well.
The controversy echoes the recent Mustafizur Rahman situation, where Kolkata Knight Riders were directed by the BCCI to release the Bangladesh pacer from his IPL contract following political pressure.
Whether similar forces could influence Abrar’s deal with Sunrisers Leeds remains to be seen, though the franchise operates under ECB jurisdiction rather than the BCCI.
