Cricketers made 'wrong call' not to tour South Africa, says John Buchanan
Former Australian cricket coach John Buchanan says players missed a chance to enjoy the moral high ground and were "wrong" to pull out of the tour of South Africa.
The Australia A tour, also featuring a one-day tri-series with India, was due to have begun this weekend but the failure of CA and the Au s t r a l i a n C r i cke t e r s Association to reach common ground in their pay dispute meant players felt it best to make the unprecedented call of not to go.
Players were said to be "gutted" by the turn of events but felt they had to remain united and take a stand. The call has jeopardised the Test hopes of several players, particularly if the tour of Bangladesh in August goes ahead.
Buchanan, who presided over Australia's golden era under the captaincy of Steve Waugh and the early years of Ricky Ponting's tenure, said players should have gone to South Africa.
"Given the lack of communication between ACA and CA, I can completely understand why the players, via the ACA, decided not to tour. In my opinion, though, this was the wrong decision to make by the ACA for a range of reasons, one of which was the capacity for players to play cricket and press their respective cases for higher selection," he told Fairfax Media on Saturday.
"Beyond this more individualistic reason, there was a clear opportunity for the players and the ACA to place themselves above the mire of a pay dispute and realise that everyone is a custodian of the game of cricket and further, how sport, sportsmen and sportswomen are to be perceived and understood from a public who appreciate their skills, but also do not want to be treated with little sensitivity or understanding about their personal situations.
"Without wanting to get too philosophical and whimsical, small business, salaried staff, various industries, unemployed and Australia's econo- my are doing it tough at the moment, and yet we still reside in a very lucky country as we scan the globe. It is an absolute honour to represent your country. This privilege should never be taken lightly as it is not about the person selected but about who and
Players could have signed a tour- by- tour contract. They have also discussed the option of being sub- contracted through the ACA for the tour of Bangladesh, a one-day series in India in October and the home Ashes campaign, should a new memorandum of understanding not be conceived.
CA is on the cusp of already having $1 million in salary savings from more than 200 players being unemployed for more than a week. There are about 70 who continue to be paid as they have multi-year state contracts. CA also saved about $250,000 in costs from not touring South Africa. All money saved will be poured into community cricket.
CA chief James Sutherland has not officially joined negotiations, an issue which has irked players, but he has had telephone conversations with ACA chief Alistair Nicholson. More discussions are expected this week but, unless either party is willing to give ground, it's hard to see major progress being made.
Pla yers want to continue to be paid from the gross revenue scheme they have enjoyed since 1997 but maintain they are open to negotiating what streams these include, and how much men and women international and state-based cricketers share.