London: Former wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist has broken ranks with current and former players by backing Cricket Australia's(CA) pay offer and terming it as a 'very fair deal'.
The 45-year-old also expressed his confidence that the pay dispute between CA and the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) is currently on track for a resolution by the June 30, the date of expiry of the MoU between two governing bodies.
Gilchrist's comments came despite the cricketers' firm stand in opposing CA's proposal to scrap a shared revenue model for player payments, which has been in place for nearly 20 years.
Gilchrist applauded the players at the highest level for showing unity and expressing concern that the new deal would leave domestic players out of pocket, but added the CA's argument that the revenue-sharing agreement takes money away from the grassroots of the game had merit.
"I think Cricket Australia are offering a very, very fair deal for players. No-one's going to go without and everyone's growing and increasing," the Guardian quoted Gilchrist as saying.
"I do hope that they're [the players] thinking of the cricketer at the most important level, and that is the kid signing on for his first year. Because grassroots cricket is under siege from other sports, like the various footy codes," he added.
The Australian cricketers playing in the ICC Champions Trophy as well as number of former cricketers have been vocal in their opposition to the deal.
CA, on the other hand, has maintained that their new pay offer has to be implemented for the long-term good of the game.
The Test great believes that the two sides would eventually negotiate.
"There will be an end to it. I wouldn't be surprised if they've been meeting in the last few days - the players' association and the board," said Gilchrist.
"I think both sides are going to have to compromise. Having spoken to people in both parties, I think they're both starting to say that and understand that," he added.
In what could be seen as a more moderate approach applied by CA to resolve the ongoing pay dispute with ACA, the country's cricket board and the states have backed down from the threat to send out contracts under the terms of the new pay proposal already rejected by the players.
ACA had earlier rejected the new pay offer from the game's governing body, saying the proposal will be a win for cricket administrators but a loss for the game.
In March, CA made an offer, proposing that the average pay of Australia's international women's players would rise from $A79,000 to $A179,000, while the average remuneration of state cricketers would more than double to $A52,000.
Under CA's proposal, only male international players would have the chance to share in any surplus revenue, while other domestic male players and women at both domestic and international level would have to settle for fixed amounts which would not fluctuate according to the game's income.
However, the ACA pointed out a series of concerns with the proposal, saying that it "disrespects the value of domestic cricketers and the role they play in Australian cricket".
