X (formerly Twitter) exploded on Thursday evening after the news of Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed being roped in by an Indian-owned team broke out. The angered cricket fans, especially those attached to the Indian Premier League (IPL), collectively condemned Sunrisers Leeds and franchise owner Kavya Maran for signing Abrar for USD 255,000 (Rs 2.35 crore) at The Hundred 2026 player auction.
From unfollowing Sunrisers on social media to boycotting the franchise and digging old posts of the Pakistan spinner, a lot has unfolded since Abrar entered the Orange Army.
The knee-jerk reaction to Abrar being brought on board by the Sunrisers camp was: why would an Indian-owned team choose a Pakistani player and go against the national sentiment?
“What a shame @SunRisers? You bought a Pakistani? That too when people’s minds are still afresh with the wounds of #PahalgamTerroristAttack? DMK family bought Hyderabad franchise and is employing a Pakistani to bring bad name to Telugu people (sic)," remarked one user on X.
Abrar’s old social media posts, in which he had mocked India, resurfaced in the ongoing X outrage, further fuelling the anger among cricket fans in the country.
“I have unfollowed and BLOCKED @SunRisers and @sunrisersleeds for buying Abrar Ahmed. He mocked Abhinandan with his silly social media posts. Can’t support an IPL team which is not true to its own country," an irked fan wrote on X.
“Kavya Maran’s franchise Sunrisers Leeds acquired Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed for £190k. Abrar Ahmed was literally used to mock India with the cup of tea gesture during operation sindoor and used to mock Indian players during the Asia Cup with unwanted celebration (sic)," a part of another viral post read.
#BoycottSunrisers was among the many hashtags that took off on X on Thursday night leading up to Friday morning, as thousands showed their disdain towards Sunrisers and Kavya for “going against the country" by picking a Pakistan cricketer.
“Traitor Traitor Traitor
Abrar Ahmed, who mocked our defence forces. Nothing could be more shameful than this. Disgusting!
He mocked Indian fighter pilot Abhinandan with a tea gesture,Indian players with unwanted celebrations
& our Indian soldiers during the Operation Sindoor
Shame on Kavya Maran who purchased
Abrar Ahmed
Boycott SRH (sic)," an X user commented on the ongoing saga.
“Pakistani cricketer Abrar Ahmed who made fun of the Pahalgam victims and the Indian Army, has been picked up by Sunrisers Leeds owned by Kavya Maran. End of news," chimed another.
Sunrisers Leeds’ official X (formerly Twitter) account got suspended only a few hours after the franchise selected Abrar. While there was no immediate reason known why the account was suspended, the account showed a message that read: “Account suspended. X suspends accounts that violate the X rules."
Ahmed, 27, is a leg-spinner who has played 46 Tests, 28 ODIs, and 52 T20Is for Pakistan. Sunrisers, formerly known as the Northern Superchargers, was taken over by the Indian company this year.
This will be Ahmed’s first time playing in a T20 league in Europe.
