SYDNEY, Jan 25: Australia's Test tour to India next month could be in jeopardy with leading Australian cricketers considering a boycott unless their stalled talks with the Australian Cricket Board (ACB) on pay and conditions resume soon.The ACB and the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) have exchanged correspondence but have not met formally since December 26 and no further meetings are scheduled, says Sydney Morning Herald newspaper.ACA president Tim May would not comment yesterday on the possibility of a tour strike, saying he was bound by an agreement with the board to keep all their dealings confidential, the paper said yesterday.
It said ideologically the two sides were as far apart as ever in their dispute over the players' claim on a greater share of the sport's revenue and a more effective say in the game's governance, adding that privately, neither side expected an early resolution.The paper quoted ACB chief executive Malcolm Speed as saying, ``It (strike action) has not been raised at anyof our meetings, and there has certainly been no discussion about it.'' Australia is scheduled to start its seven-week three-Test tour of India on February 20.
The ACA first mooted the idea of a strike in November last year, when it announced a strike timetable, targeting four one-day international games between Australia and South Africa and Australia and New Zealand in December.While the ACA's membership voted for a strike action, the executive mostly Test players called it off, believing it would become a public relations disaster. Public opinion so far has gone against the elite players who have been portrayed as greedy and naive.
Practically, they are neither likely to boycott the India tour, nor the preceding One-day series in New Zealand, the paper said.The dispute first erupted in October, when the ACA presented the board with a lengthy list of demand which would quadruple the money paid to Australian cricketers within three years and give them effectively a 50-50 role in the running of the
game.The board, which walked out of the first meeting, said the proposals went beyond the proper role of a players association, while the players said they only brought cricket into line with other professional sports.
Last month, the two sides finally agreed to conduct their negotiations behind closed doors, after the board agreed to fast-track a total review of state cricket which has been the main sticking point in the negotiations. But so far, no compromise has been worked out.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
