CRICKET bat giant Gray-Nicolls is weighing up its options regarding disgraced former Australian captain David Warner.

The popular gear and apparel company refused to comment, but foxsports.com.au understands a decision on Warner’s lucrative sponsorship could be made as early as this week.

Already the jungle drums are beating with strong suggestions Gray-Nicolls will cull Warner either temporarily or permanently following the ball tampering scandal.

LIVE stream the 2018 Indian Premier League T20 Competition on FOX SPORTS. Get a free 2-week Foxtel Now trial & start watching in minutes. SIGN UP NOW >

Industry sources suggest the left-handed batsman’s deal with Gray-Nicolls is worth more than $500,000 per annum.

He is the face of the company in Australia and helped launch the ‘Kaboom’ bat, which weighs in at two pounds, nine and three-quarter ounces if his preferences are met.

Gray-Nicolls has three options.

The first is they sever ties with Warner altogether, just as electronics company LG and sports apparel brand ASICS did last week.

It’s understood this remains a real possibility, but less likely than Kookaburra Cricket’s approach to Cameron Bancroft.

Gray-Nicolls are yet to decide if they’ll stand by David Warner. Source: AFP

Kookaburra has “suspended” the Western Australian for as long as he is out of elite level cricket.

Bancroft is understood to be on a base salary not stretching beyond the tens-of-thousands of dollars anyway, with bonuses every time he represents Australia.

“Kookaburra, in accordance with its contract, are suspending Cameron Bancroft for the duration of his CA suspension,” a spokesperson for the company told foxsports.com.au.

“We hope to support Cameron continuing his career after this time.”

Gray-Nicolls – a company which has English origins that predate Test cricket – could feasibly follow suit with Warner and recontract him after his 12-month suspension is complete.

And even if he never plays international cricket again, Warner will almost certainly remain a highly visible and marketable player on the world T20 circuit, just as Chris Gayle and Kevin Pietersen have done.

Kookaburra are standing by Cameron Bancroft. Source: Getty Images

The third option is to stick by Warner unconditionally throughout his year away from the game, pay him his retainer salary and then continue once he resumes his professional career.

It’s believed this approach is the least likely of the three scenarios, although no formal decision has been made.

Warner is currently in Melbourne seeking legal advice on the 12-month ban offered to him by CA.

If Warner is suspended or even sacked by Gray-Nicolls, Shaun Marsh would likely become the lead player in any marketing campaign ahead of the 2018-19 summer, with Marcus Stoinis and Chris Lynn also in the mix from a Big Bash League perspective.

Former Australian captain Steve Smith’s situation with New Balance is murky at best, while Sanitarium and the Commonwealth Bank have both dropped him as an ambassador.

When foxsports.com.au contacted New Balance, the response was “no comment.”

But New Balance has shown it is prepared to take a hard line stance in recent months, culling English all-rounder Ben Stokes in October.

The sports equipment manufacturer said it “does not condone behaviour… that does not match our brand culture and values” in a statement that confirmed it had severed a $300,000 per year deal with Stokes.

New Balance announced its decision shortly after Stokes issued a public apology to Katie Price and her disabled son Harvey after a video went viral of the player impersonating the pair.

While individual deals between players and bat companies won’t hurt Cricket Australia’s (CA) bank balance, the game’s governing body has enough on its plate ahead of the next broadcast rights deal which could see Test matches moved from Channel 9 for the first time since World Series Cricket.

Just one season into its arrangement, wealth management company Magellen terminated its three-year sponsorship with CA in response to the ball tampering scandal last week

The Australian Financial Review estimated the deal to be worth a whopping $20 million and leaves CA without a major naming rights partner for next summer’s two Test series against India and Sri Lanka.

Qantas, while “very disappointed” with the ball tampering scandal, has stood firm in its sponsorship.