Australia A to boycott SA tour if no pay deal

AFP, SYDNEY: Players will boycott an Australia A tour of South Africa this month in an escalation of their bitter dispute with Cricket Australia unless a new pay deal is agreed, the Australian Cricketers' Association said Sunday.

The players' union held an emergency meeting in Sydney where they decided to take action for the tour beginning on July 12 unless a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed with CA by Friday. ACA chief executive Alistair Nicholson said a “significant breakthrough” was needed for the South Africa tour to proceed.

The latest development in the stalled pay row comes after both parties failed to reach an agreement on a new MOU before Friday's deadline after months of protracted negotiations.

It leaves as many as 230 male and female players unemployed and threatens fixtures including this year's prestige home Ashes series.

“They don't intend to tour but the reality is they don't fly out of the country until Friday,” Nicholson told reporters of the Australia A tour.

“So the players are going to go into camp as planned and hopefully we can make some progress with regards to the MOU.

“There would need to be a significant breakthrough on the key issue of the revenue sharing model.” CA said in response it would never force any players to play for an Australian team.

“Australia A is a development tour which gives players an opportunity to perform at a high level,” CA said in a statement. “It is therefore surprising that players would elect not to tour, however CA has never, and would never attempt to force anyone to play for an Australian team who is unwilling to do so.

:CA remains ready to negotiate a new MOU and has again called on the ACA to show genuine flexibility and commence negotiations in the best interests of the players and the game.”

The players' union decision also includes players who are on multi-year deals with their respective state teams and who will refuse to play without an MOU.

“It's not an easy thing to do... but we are very united," Australia A captain Usman Khawaja told reporters.

Australia A to boycott SA tour if no pay deal

AFP, SYDNEY: Players will boycott an Australia A tour of South Africa this month in an escalation of their bitter dispute with Cricket Australia unless a new pay deal is agreed, the Australian Cricketers Association said Sunday. The players union held an emergency meeting in Sydney where they decided to take action for the tour beginning on July 12 unless a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed with CA by Friday. ACA chief executive Alistair Nicholson said a significant breakthrough was needed for the South Africa tour to proceed. The latest development in the stalled pay row comes after both parties failed to reach an agreement on a new MOU before Fridays deadline after months of protracted negotiations. It leaves as many as 230 male and female players unemployed and threatens fixtures including this years prestige home Ashes series. They dont intend to tour but the reality is they dont fly out of the country until Friday, Nicholson told reporters of the Australia A tour. So the players are going to go into camp as planned and hopefully we can make some progress with regards to the MOU. There would need to be a significant breakthrough on the key issue of the revenue sharing model. CA said in response it would never force any players to play for an Australian team. Australia A is a development tour which gives players an opportunity to perform at a high level, CA said in a statement. It is therefore surprising that players would elect not to tour, however CA has never, and would never attempt to force anyone to play for an Australian team who is unwilling to do so. :CA remains ready to negotiate a new MOU and has again called on the ACA to show genuine flexibility and commence negotiations in the best interests of the players and the game. The players union decision also includes players who are on multi-year deals with their respective state teams and who will refuse to play without an MOU. Its not an easy thing to do... but we are very united, Australia A captain Usman Khawaja told reporters.