In a shocking improvement, not one of the Pakistani cricketers had been chosen in The Hundred 2025 participant draft held on Wednesday, March 12.
A complete of fifty Pakistan gamers had registered for the draft – 5 for the ladies’s competitors and 45 for the lads’s. Regardless of a aggressive choice course of and restricted abroad slots, it was anticipated that the ladies’s gamers, together with Aliya Riaz, Fatima Sana, Yusra Amir, Iram Javed, and Jaweria Rauf, would go unsold.
Nevertheless, it was a bit shocking that not one of the male Pakistani cricketers had been picked, despite the fact that a number of abroad spots had been nonetheless out there throughout groups.
Among the many males, Naseem Shah was the most costly Pakistani participant with a reserve value of £120,000, whereas skilled all-rounder Imad Wasim and promising younger opener Saim Ayub set their reserve value at £78,500. Different gamers like Shadab Khan, Hasan Ali, and Mohammad Hasnain had a reserve value of £63,000. Some gamers, together with Mohammad Abbas, Haider Ali, and Ammad Butt, didn’t set any reserve value.
This 12 months’s draft noticed modifications within the event’s panorama because the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) allowed exterior investments within the franchises. All eight franchises have now acquired backing, with 4 being owned by Indian Premier League (IPL) buyers.
Other than Pakistani gamers, England’s veteran bowler James Anderson was additionally ignored within the males’s draft. The 42-year-old, who retired from worldwide cricket in early 2024, had entered the draft after signing a contract with Lancashire for the upcoming season. Anderson, who has not performed T20 cricket in over a decade, will compete within the T20 Blast however missed out on a spot in The Hundred, though he may nonetheless be picked as a wildcard participant.
Afghanistan’s Noor Ahmad and New Zealand’s Michael Bracewell had been the highest-paid abroad signings. Each secured £200,000 contracts, with Ahmad becoming a member of Manchester Originals and Bracewell heading to Southern Courageous. Bracewell’s choice displays his spectacular performances for New Zealand in current worldwide tournaments.