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Cricket Australia's stance is just good business

Should Peter Handscomb come back? (AAP Image/Richard Wainwright)
Roar Guru
4th July, 2017
3

These days, the reality is sport is a business. As much as fans hate it, that’s the reality.

How many AFL, NRL and A-League players leave a club because either the club or the player is making a business decision?

Therefore why is Cricket Australia being hammered for making business decisions. If I’m wrong please correct me but if you ran a business wouldn’t you do the following: reward you best staff and provide incentives for the other staff to make your business more profitable.

For months we’ve heard about the dispute between Cricket Australia and the players, which has led to them being effectively ‘unemployed’ for the past few days. Players have taken to Instagram and other social media sources to lament the ongoing feud, criticising Cricket Australia for the standoff.

If what I’ve read is accurate, a Shield player makes $240k a year. That’s not bad money in anyone terms and considering the crowds that attend those games, it’s fair to say that Cricket Australia is being generous. Those particular staff aren’t profitable on crowds and viewer numbers alone.

Also the game gives those Shield players a platform to make serious money outside of the Cricket Australia banner, for instance through the IPL, Big Bash or other revenue streams.

Would this pay model work? Reward excellence while offering an good pay to everyone else? I think so.

Take for example Steve Smith. He first came onto the scene as a leg spinner and he wasn’t that good. He went away and worked on his batting and the rest is history. Does he deserve the rewards he now gets? Absolutely.

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If sport is business, which sadly it is, sometimes we have to cope business decisions.

What do you think, Roarers? Who is at fault in this pay dispute, and will it be resolved anytime soon?

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