Abrar, ranked as high as number two in the ICC rankings until last month and now third, was signed by Sunrisers Leeds, which owns Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League, for 190k Pounds Sterling last week. The franchise owners are facing severe backlash in India over the signing, but Abrar is not worried by comments over the move, Telecom Asia Sport said in a report.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Gavaskar called the signing an indirect way to fund the Pakistan military, which, in turn, kills Indian soldiers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
While the Pakistan Cricket Board and Abrar are tight-lipped on the backlash, sources said there are no concerns as the matter is between England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the franchise.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThe noise on Abrar\u2019s signing is not unexpected, but he is not losing sleep over the uproar,\u201d Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) sources told www.telecomasia.net.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cAbrar registered for The Hundred as he is ready to ply his trade in the leagues around the world and was signed as one of the top three bowlers in T20I rankings, which is well deserved,\u201d the report said, quoting sources.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThe coach of Sunrisers Leeds, Daniel Vettori, conveyed the signing to Abrar and advised him to be in touch and prepared to give his best,\u201d the sources said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Vettori, himself a spinner of repute who played 442 internationals for New Zealand across formats, backed the signing.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cOnce we missed out on Adil Rashid [to Southern Brave], who was a priority early on, then we obviously jumped into the overseas spinner. There were four or five guys that we were looking at, and Abrar was one of them. Very pleased to get him,\u201d Daniel Vettori said after the conclusion of the auction.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Abrar\u2019s signing comes after the ECB threatened that The Hundred sides could face disciplinary action if there is evidence that Pakistan players are overlooked in the auction based on nationality, the Telecom Asia Sport report said on Tuesday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The warning followed after the BBC reported that the four Indian-owned teams - Manchester Super Giants, MI London, Southern Brave, and Sunrisers Leeds - will not consider Pakistan cricketers over a blanket ban on them due to strained relations between the two countries.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The relations between the two countries hit their lowest point after the terrorist attack in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir in April last year.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
New Delhi accused the attacks of having the backing of Islamabad, a claim Pakistan denied. A four-day military conflict followed, with both sides claiming victory.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The relations between the two countries hit their lowest point after the terrorist attack in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir in April last year.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThis is absolutely ridiculous & should be condemned. How are these comments acceptable? I don\u2019t care how many runs you have scored. Vile stuff from Gavaskar,\u201d Rafiq wrote on social media platform X.<\/p>\r\n\r\n