Sixty-three Pakistani cricketers, including Shaheen Afridi, Shadab Khan, and Usman Tariq, have registered for the inaugural The Hundred auction scheduled for March 11, 2026. However, prominent stars Babar Azam and Mohammed Rizwan have opted out, reportedly due to national team commitments for the upcoming West Indies series.
Shadow Ban Concerns
Reports suggest a ‘shadow ban’ may affect Pakistani players, following the entry of four IPL franchise owners into The Hundred. Historically, IPL franchises have avoided signing Pakistani players, with few exceptions in overseas leagues like SA20, ILT20, and CPL. Even prior to foreign ownership, only nine Pakistani players had participated in five seasons of The Hundred.
Despite challenges, Pakistani players such as Shaheen Afridi, Babar Azam, and Mohammed Rizwan previously committed to the Big Bash League, although injuries and poor form affected their seasons.
Franchise Ownership and Player Trends
Four IPL-affiliated franchises—Mumbai Indians (MI London), Lucknow Super Giants (Manchester Super Giants), Sunrisers Hyderabad (Sunrisers Leeds), and Delhi Capitals (Southern Brave)—now hold partial stakes in the league. Of these, Delhi Capitals and Southern Brave have previously signed Pakistani players like Imad Wasim, Zaman Khan, and Shan Masood. The other franchises have never contracted Pakistani nationals.
Auction & Salary Details
The 2026 The Hundred auction will feature marquee “hero” players pre-nominated by franchises, with up to four pre-auction signings allowed. Salary caps have risen to £2.05 million for men and £880,000 for women. Teams can field four overseas players per match, up from three in previous seasons.
High-profile English players like Jonny Bairstow, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, and Tammy Beaumont, alongside overseas stars including Sophie Devine, Beth Mooney, Deepti Sharma, Trent Boult, Aiden Markram, and Sunil Narine, are also in contention, though some Australian players will miss the auction due to home series commitments.