Key Points
- Cricket Australia and union bosses have signed off on a $634 million five-year deal.
- Under the agreement, Australia's female cricketers will receive a pay increase of almost 66 per cent.
- The Big Bash League salary cap will also increase by 50 per cent.
Australia's female cricketers will receive a pay increase of almost 66 per cent across the board, reaching a combined surplus of $133 million as part of a new five-year deal.
The increase will make Australia's female cricketers the highest-paid female athletes in team sport.
Cricket Australia (CA) and union bosses signed off on a $634 million deal on Monday.
As part of the new deal, CA will increase the Big Bash League (BBL) salary cap by 50 per cent, and allocate extra $53 million to the women's game.
As revealed by AAP on Sunday, women domestic cricketers will benefit with an average pay packet of $151,000, while the top-earning national player will collect $800,000.
The salary cap of the women's BBL will also double to $732,000, with officials keen to ensure the inaugural female franchise tournament is not overtaken by England's Hundred or India's WPL.
The majority of that increase will be siphoned towards attracting top-tier international talent, with domestic women's players largely collecting additional money through state cricket.
"There is enormous capacity for growth right across the women's game, as well as the BBL, both of which we believe have enormous untapped potential," Australian Cricketers' Association CEO Todd Greenberg said.
"Our men and women will benefit from significant investment into the BBL and WBBL, which will help ensure we have the best players playing."
What else is included in the new deal?
The BBL salary cap for men will increase from $2 million to $3 million, with the top-earning capacity to increase to $420,000.
Top-tier overseas players will now be able to earn up to that much through the draft, with the league also set to shrink in size from 14 to 10 games per team by 2024-25.
Rules will also be introduced to ensure the top six players at each club earn at least a combined $1.2 million.
Officials are hopeful it will entice both Australian and overseas talent.
Both Steve Smith and David Warner were paid lucrative marketing deals to play last year, while overseas talent has been lured by big-money leagues abroad during January in recent years.
"With these additional funds and the 50 per cent uplift, we're prioritising to make sure playing in the Big Bash is the destination for (the best players)," CA CEO Nick Hockley said.
"We are excited about the fact that the BBL going forward will be that tighter 43-game format. Overall the players on a played-match basis are more than doubling.
"With those levels we think it makes it a really competitive proposition for domestic and overseas players."
Women domestic cricketers will benefit with an average pay packet of $151,000 as part of a new deal, while the top-earning national player will collect $800,000. Source: AAP / Shaun Roy/BackpagePix
The squad size will, however, increase from 20 to 24 players as more international cricket is played.
Women's players will again see a significant benefit with a 25 per cent pay rise in national contracts and an increase in the number offered from 15 to 18.
