When Sunrisers Leeds — owned by Kavya Maran‘s Sun TV Group — snapped up Pakistan leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed for £190,000, it set off a frenzy. It was historic: the first Pakistani player purchased by an Indian-owned franchise ever since Pakistani players were banned in the IPL after the 26/11 attacks in 2008.
To add to that, there was a huge hue and cry over there being a blanket ban over Pakistan players by India-owned The Hundred franchises. Despite all this, Abrar was picked after a serious battle of bids. Naturally it got all the attention, but the inaugural Hundred auction, spanning over two days on March 11–12 was an eye-opener in pure financial terms.
Here’s the breakdown.
James Coles The Real Winner
The real bidding war was for 21-year-old Sussex all-rounder James Coles, who London Spirit secured for £390,000 — more than double what Abrar fetched. Welsh Fire meanwhile burned through over half their budget on just Jordan Cox and Joe Root alone.
Table-1 Top 5 Men’s Auction Buys At The Hundred
| Rank | Player | Team | Price (£) | Price (₹) |
| 1 | James Coles | London Spirit | £390,000 | ₹4.81 cr |
| 2 | Liam Livingstone | London Spirit | £350,000 | ₹4.32 cr |
| 3 | Jos Buttler | Manchester Super Giants | £350,000 | ₹4.32 cr |
| 4 | Jacob Bethell | Birmingham Phoenix | £340,000 | ₹4.19 cr |
| 5 | Jamie Overton | London Spirit | £225,000 | ₹2.77 cr |
Beth Mooney, Sophie Devine Rule The Roost in Women’s Hundred Auction
Beth Mooney and Sophie Devine became the most expensive acquisitions at £210,000 each, in what was a landmark day for women’s cricket pay. The women’s auction ran for six hours, with franchises collectively spending around £4 million — propelling several players into the ranks of the best-paid female athletes in the UK.
Table- 2: Top 5 Women’s Auction Buys At The Hundred
| Rank | Player | Team | Price (£) | Price (₹) |
| 1 | Beth Mooney | Trent Rockets | £210,000 | ₹2.59 cr |
| 2 | Sophie Devine | Welsh Fire | £210,000 | ₹2.59 cr |
| 3 | Dani Gibson | Sunrisers Leeds | £190,000 | ₹2.34 cr |
| 4 | Nadine de Klerk | London Spirit | £170,000 | ₹2.10 cr |
| 5 | Alice Capsey | Birmingham Phoenix | £130,000 | ₹1.60 cr |
How much did the teams actually spend? The Hundred Auction In Numbers
Total Men’s Spend by Team
| Team | Players | Total £ | Total ₹ |
| London Spirit | 14 | £1,925,000 | ₹23.74 cr |
| Manchester Super Giants | 16 | £1,890,000 | ₹23.31 cr |
| Birmingham Phoenix | 14 | £1,840,000 | ₹22.69 cr |
| MI London | 14 | £1,750,000 | ₹21.58 cr |
| Welsh Fire | 14 | £1,700,000 | ₹20.97 cr |
| Sunrisers Leeds | 14 | £1,650,000 | ₹20.35 cr |
| Southern Brave | 14 | £1,600,000 | ₹19.73 cr |
| Trent Rockets | 14 | £1,550,000 | ₹19.12 cr |
Total Women’s Spend by Team
| Team | Players | Total £ | Total ₹ |
| Trent Rockets | 15 | £880,000 | ₹10.85 cr |
| Welsh Fire | 14 | £875,000 | ₹10.79 cr |
| Sunrisers Leeds | 14 | £860,000 | ₹10.60 cr |
| London Spirit | 13 | £840,000 | ₹10.36 cr |
| Birmingham Phoenix | 14 | £820,000 | ₹10.11 cr |
| Manchester Super Giants | 13 | £800,000 | ₹9.87 cr |
| MI London | 13 | £780,000 | ₹9.62 cr |
| Southern Brave | 14 | £760,000 | ₹9.37 cr |
Overall Auction Summary
| Metric | Men | Women | Combined |
| Total players bought | 130 | 112 | 242 |
| Total spend | ~£13.9 million | ~£6.6 million | ~£20.5 million |
| Total spend (₹) | ₹171.4 cr | ₹81.4 cr | ₹252.8 cr |
| Salary cap per team | £2.05m / ₹25.28 cr | £880k / ₹10.85 cr | — |
Abrar’s signing was symbolically massive. The money, though? It was just a mid-table bid in what turned out to be a landmark two-day auction for English cricket.