We just want to be treated fairly: Peter Siddle

Recently, there have been heated discussions on pay dispute between the Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers Association. The situation is with regards to a sharing of revenue with the players that CA wants to overhaul in a bid so as to attain a wider flexibility in the issue of delivering funds. Amidst this ongoing tussle between the two bodies, Aussie pacer Peter Siddle has come out with a statement and wants the Australian players to be “treated fairly”.

He emphasised that his context is not just about the current situation that is prevailing in Australian cricket with both parties at loggerheads and unwilling to budge an inch, his concern is the impact this could have in the long run. Siddle also said that the players are not being selfish with their demands.

Fair treatment

“The players play a big part in Australian cricket. We just want to be treated fairly. It’s not so much to do with the situation we’re in now and pay now, it’s about the longevity of the game and making the game strong for the future and looking at that. That’s the big one… a lot of people believe that we are being selfish at the moment with what we want at the moment,” he said.

Siddle stated that they were not being unreasonable and that they were only trying to assure the longevity of the game and making sure the game is healthier Down Under. “It’s about making the game stronger for when we’re done and for the people that are going to play and continue after we’re finished,” the 32-year-old added. “It’s about making sure cricket’s strong, not just for now but for a long time and we want cricket to be around for a long time,”

The situation is threatening to boil over the proposed June 30 deadline and the Australian players have warned of a boycott unless a favourable result is achieved before the date.

The right-arm pacer made his debut against India in 2008 and owing to a number of back injuries which kept him out of the rekoning, he was also left out of CA’s proposed list of national players contracts. However, at 32, Siddle is still hopeful of getting back into the midst of things. “It gives me the challenge of pushing harder to get back in the side, which sometimes can be a bigger benefit than being always that certain starter,” he concluded.