Cricket Australia announces annual budget cuts of 40 million AUD, also confirms layoffs due to COVID-19 crisis

The coronavirus pandemic has taken a toll on every sector across the world. Along with affecting millions of people, the COVID-19 outbreak has also brought the economy to a standstill.

Talking about the financial aspect of the sporting scenario, major cricket boards have incurred losses due to the postponement of series and tournaments. Boards have been compelled to resort to pay cuts and layoffs to manage their operations during this global crisis.

In the wake of the COVID-19 debacle, Cricket Australia (CA) also announced annual budget cuts of 40 million AUD along with confirming that it has made 40 redundancies. CA, in a statement, revealed that the pandemic has led to the decision of making 14 per cent of their workforce redundant.

“We recognise that this is a difficult time for Cricket Australia employees, particularly for those staff members affected by these redundancies and their families,” CA chairman Earl Eddings said in a statement.

“However, our responsibility is clear: to navigate a path for cricket through this period of uncertainty and disruption to ensure we come out the other side sustainable in the short term and prosperous in the long term.

Throughout COVID-19, the need to work closely with the cricket community and to move quickly as circumstances have changed has never been more important,” he added.

Possibility of T20 World Cup in Australia looks ‘unrealistic’

Cricket Australia also revealed that Australia A tours won’t be taking place this season in the wake of cost-cutting measures. Meanwhile, the board has already announced dates for Australia’s action-packed scheduled including the much-awaited series against India.

Moreover, Australia’s top-flight domestic cricket is expected to be unperturbed by the pandemic and the high-octane Big Bash League will also take place as per schedule.

“With increasing clarity about the impact of COVID-19, we have managed the financial impact on our organisation, our people, our partners and players,” Eddings further revealed.

Eddings also said that the possibility of the T20 World Cup to take place in Australia this year looks slim at the moment. The showpiece event might get postponed because of the COVID-19 crisis, paving way for the BCCI to host the IPL during that window.