Why Pakistani players went unpicked in The Hundred 2025 draft?

Not a single Pakistani cricketer has been picked at The Hundred 2025 player draft which took place at the Lord's on Wednesday.

A total of 50 Pakistan cricketers, including five women, went unpicked at an upcoming tournament involving eight men's and women's teams each.

With limited overseas slots and a competitive selection process, it was not entirely surprising that Aliya Riaz, Fatima Sana, Yusra Amir, Iram Javed and Jaweria Rauf remained unpicked.

However, it was more surprising that not even one out of 45 male Pakistani cricketers in the men's draft were selected, despite several overseas slots still being available across the teams.

Naseem Shah led the pack as the highest-priced Pakistani player, with a reserve price of £120,000. Meanwhile, experienced all-rounder Imad Wasim and rising star Saim Ayub had set their reserve price at £78,500.

Shadab Khan, Hasan Ali, and Mohammad Hasnain were listed with a reserve price of £63,000. In contrast, several others, including Mohammad Abbas, Haider Ali and Ammad Butt, had registered without specifying a reserve price.

This season of The Hundred has seen a shift in the tournament's landscape, with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) allowing external investments into franchises.

As a result, all eight franchises have now received investments, with four of them backed by Indian Premier League (IPL) owners.

The IPL has had a complicated relationship with Pakistani players. Since 2008, Pakistan players have not been allowed to participate in the league.

However, Pakistani players going unpicked was not linked with the IPL influence and instead due to their uncertain availability for the entirety of the tournament, scheduled to run from August 5 to 31.

Notably, Pakistan are set to play a three-match ODI and T20I series against West Indies from July 31 to August 12, which will clash with The Hundred’s window.

The green shirts may also organise a white-ball series against Bangladesh in the July-August window, which would put their players’ availability for The Hundred in further doubt.

Remember, ECB Chief Executive Richard Gould had assured last month that Pakistani cricketers would not face restrictions in The Hundred due to IPL influence.

"We are aware of the challenges Pakistani players face in other regions, but that won’t be happening here," Gould stated.