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Deadline looms for cricket pay dispute

Australian cricket could come to a halt if a new pay deal isn't sorted. (AAP Image/Dave Hunt)
24th July, 2017
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Anger is building among Australian cricketers as the departure date for a Test tour of Bangladesh ticks closer and pay talks continue to progress ever so slowly.

Negotiations between Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) continued on Monday.

The previous Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) expired at the end of the financial year, at which point some 230 cricketers became unemployed.

This month’s Australia A tour was cancelled because of the impasse. The next deadline in the saga is August 18, when Steve Smith’s side are due to depart for a two-Test tour of Bangladesh.

If the governing body and players’ union haven’t made genuine progress then the trip won’t go ahead.

“Not sure the players can do much more to solve the dispute. We’re really proud to offer up to an extra $30 million for grassroots,” vice-captain David Warner posted on Twitter, referencing the terms sheet that the union sent to CA last week.

Paceman Pat Cummins tweeted that “players are as frustrated as anyone else. We want to play. Offering even more to grassroots to get a deal!!!”.

Coaches, officials, selectors, sponsors, fans and other stakeholders are becoming increasingly incensed by the standoff.

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Cummins, Warner and other members of the Test squad are set to assemble in Darwin for a training camp that starts on August 10.

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