England captain Harry Brook said that it would be a “shame” if Pakistani players were snubbed at next month’s auction for The Hundred. According to a recent report from the BBC, Pakistan players could likely be overlooked in the auction process by teams commanding an Indian influence.
Four of the eight teams in The Hundred now have stakes owned by owners of IPL franchises, and they will not bid for any Pakistani players, the BBC reported. It claimed that a player agent had referred to this situation as “an unwritten rule” across leagues with Indian investment.
Brook was retained by the Sunrisers Leeds (formerly known as Northern Superchargers) franchise as the league’s highest-paid player at £465,000. While he led the Superchargers franchise for two seasons before, Brook had stated that he would not be in contention for a leadership role this year.
“My main focus at the minute is to play the T20 World Cup,” Brook said on the eve of England’s first Super 8s match against Sri Lanka in Pallekele.
“That part of The Hundred is above me, and whatever they decided to do is up to them.
“Pakistan have been a great cricket nation for many years and have some awesome players, some of the best players in the world.
“It would be a shame not to see some of them in The Hundred,” remarked Brook.
The Hundred franchises at least part-owned by IPL entities are Manchester Super Giants, Southern Brave, MI London, and Sunrisers Leeds. The ownership came into effect on October 1, 2025.
The absence of Pakistan players has been commonplace over the years across major franchise leagues where Indian ownership has been involved. No Pakistani player has featured in the Indian Premier League (IPL) after the inaugural season in 2008, or in the three seasons of the SA20 – where IPL franchise groups own all six teams.
In the ILT20 league in the United Arab Emirates, franchises helmed by Indian owners have not signed any Pakistan player for four seasons. In contrast, the American-owned Desert Vipers have signed eight Pakistan players in the same timeline.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan on Saturday urged the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to ensure in the inclusion of Pakistan players, insisting that their absence would contradict the tournament’s ethos of inclusivity.
“I am a huge fan of the Hundred, but it has to appeal to all supporters for it to have any credibility. This has the potential to turn away the large Pakistan population that lives in England and loves cricket. What message does that send about our game? If true, it makes a mockery of the stated aim of Richard Thompson, the ECB chairman, to make English cricket the most inclusive sport in the country,” Vaughan wrote in his Telegraph column.
“The ECB need to act fast on this. They own the league, and this should not be allowed to happen. The most inclusive sport in the country is not one that allows this to happen,” he wrote.
The Hundred will be moving to an auction system for the first time this year, slated to be held on March 11 (Women) and March 12 (Men).
