Graeme Smith expresses his opinion on the pay dispute in Australia

Australian cricketers are going through some tough days as they do not have a work contract with their board. All of the cricketers are currently unemployed and the lingering bitter pay dispute has engulfed 230 Australian cricketers. June 30 was the deadline for their previous contract.

Graeme Smith’s view

Graeme Smith was one of Australia’s most bitter rivals during a stellar career, the highlight of which arguably came in 2008 when he led the Proteas to their first-ever Test series win in Australia. As a youngster, the opener put Mathew Hayden and Shane Warne’s noses out of joint when he publicly complained about Australia’s sledging. More recently, he upset Steve Smith last summer with a stinging critique Australia’s culture amid a five-Test losing streak.

Overnight, Graeme Smith leaped to the defense of his namesake and the hundreds of unemployed Australian cricketers embroiled in the current saga. “I was part of a revenue-share partnership model for many years as a player and this was a critical factor in fostering the relationship between board and players,” Smith said in a statement issued by the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA).

He also added, “In the current cricket environment where players have other options I don’t understand why a board would want to change a partnership that has proved to be successful.”

Lisa Sthalekar’s point of view

Smith is one of the two independent FICA board members. The other is former Southern Stars all-rounder Lisa Sthalekar, who also sits on the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) executive.

“It has been heartening to see the unity shown from the male and female players across Australia at a time when they have come under immense pressure,” Sthalekar said in the FICA statement. “I know there is a lot of support around the world for the principled stance they are taking to maintain a genuine partnership for all players, not just a few.”

Current situation

The previous Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Cricket Australia (CA) and the ACA expired on June 30. The two parties have hardly negotiated in recent months because they remain deadlocked over the issue of revenue sharing.

The governing body wants to scrap the model that has shaped player’s salaries since the first MOU was agreed 20 years ago. CA’s boss James Sutherland continues to ignore the union’s pleas for him to enter emergency mediation.

This month’s Australia A tour of South Africa is set to be boycotted because of the pay dispute. Upcoming tours to Bangladesh and India, plus this summer’s Ashes, could also be affected unless the impasse ends.

CA has reportedly warned Cricket South Africa the tour may not go ahead with latter’s chief executive Haroon Lorgat confirming they were already making contingency plans.