Australia players mull options of boycotting Ashes

The Cricket Australia has been under some series state of confusions in the recent times. The point of discussion for them has been the ongoing tussle for the payment issues. The CA came up with a new remuneration policy which did not get too well with the players. The players believed that they deserved a fairer share of the revenues. However, the board had a firm stance on their policies.

James Sutherland, the Chief Executive of the Cricket Australia, threatened the players that in case they do not accept the new remuneration policies, their contracts will not be renewed. He was very direct in his verdict that the  board will not be changing their grounds on this issue.

“CA is not contemplating alternative contracting arrangements to pay players beyond 30 June if their contracts have expired. In the absence of the ACA negotiating a new MOU, players with contracts expiring in 2016-17 will not have contracts for 2017-18,” James Sutherland had quoted.

The Australia Cricketers’ Association (ACA) was absolutely miffed with the threat given by the board. The non-negotiable attitude of the board irked the members and the ACA Chief Executive, Alistair Nicholson.

“Clearly, we are disappointed that CA are threatening the players. It’s also a window into the nature of CA’s behavior in these negotiations so far. There is incoherence and aggression in what we have experienced at the negotiating table from CA,” the ACA Chief Executive quoted.

Former Australian cricketer, Mark Taylor, who is currently a board member, noted that it is the ACA which is failing to understand the cricket board. Also, he remarked that the threats of boycotting national tours is not a new thing. These have been coming since last year.

“Cricket Australia feel that the ACA aren’t negotiating at all. I have had players say to me in January that we could well be on strike in July,” quoted Mark Taylor.

The players will certainly not be boycotting the Champions Trophy this year since the CT 2017 falls under the previous MoU. The MoU expires in July, which will be midway through the Women’s World Cup. It will be interesting to see how the players react then. For now, the Aussie cricketers are taking to the social media hinting at a possible Ashes boycott this season.

Here is how the players have been reacting on the social media: