The mini auction for the 19th season of the Indian Premier League is scheduled to take place on December 16 in Abu Dhabi. One player belonging to PoK will also be bid in this auction. The player faced a lot of scrutiny before the India tour, often facing delays in getting visas, but now he has been shortlisted in the IPL auction. The name of this player is Saqib Mahmood, who is a fast bowler from England. Saqib Mahmood has registered for the IPL 2026 mini auction with a base price of ₹ 1.5 crore.
Saqib's PoK connection
Saqib Mahmood was born in England, but his parents are originally from Attock, Pakistan. This area borders PoK. Attock has historically had close ties to Kashmir, and many British-Pakistani families have roots in the region. However, Saqib grew up in England and made his debut for Lancashire County in 2015. He is known for his fast swing bowling and reverse swing. During England's tour of India in 2019, his visa was refused due to his Pakistani origin. The same issue arose in 2024 as well and his visa for the 2025 tour of India was delayed.
Career of Saqib Mahmood
Saqib Mahmood has taken 21 wickets in 19 T20 matches for England. He has 25 wickets in ODIs and 6 in Tests. In his T20 career, he has taken 123 wickets in 91 matches. Besides Men's 100, Saqib has also played in PSL and Big Bash League. Playing for Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League, he took 13 wickets in 6 matches. Clearly, Shakib's performance has been impressive, it remains to be seen which IPL team will bid on him.
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