CA says the new offer has "gender equity at its heart". Credit:Getty Images CA says total "potential" remuneration for all players will leap from $311 million in the current five-year deal to $419 million over the next deal. Under the new plan, the average international retainer for men will rise from $703,000 to $816,000, with the expected average income, including Big Bash League payments, to be $1.45 million by 2022. This year, international stars Steve Smith, David Warner and Mitchell Starc will already pocket more than $2 million when their tour and match fees, retainers and prizemoney are included. Domestic cricketers, set to enjoy an 18 per cent pay rise, will have their average retainers jump from $199,000 to $235,000 by 2022 but the ACA said the lack of detail meant it was unclear whether these players remained a part of the set-percentage model - an area of concern. CA's initial submission had insisted domestic male cricketers - those playing in the Sheffield Shield - would no longer share in the percentage revenue model but the game's governing body says it has changed its narrative, claiming those players will still share in the model but through "proportionally higher guaranteed payments". However, a particular percentage won't be locked in.

Players had received between 24 and 26 per cent of revenue under the expiring deal. CA chief James Sutherland said the MOU, with women included for the first time, had "gender equity at its heart" but admitted there was much detail to work through with the ACA. "It's a landmark moment for Australian cricket and I think it's a landmark moment for Australian sport," Sutherland said when announcing the plan at Bill Lawry Oval in Northcote. "Cricket will offer for the first time a genuine opportunity for our women cricketers to pursue a full-time career in our sport. "Under the proposal, women will receive an immediate average pay increase of more than 125 per cent. As a result, our international women cricketers will see their average pay increase from $79,000 to $179,000, as of July 1 this year. By 2021, we expect to see our international women cricketers earning an average of $210,000.

"Our state female cricketers, playing both WNCL and WBBL, will see their average remuneration more than double from $22,000 to $52,000 this year." The core figures of the MOU have been based on an hourly rate of $32 for male and female players. ACA chief Alistair Nicholson questioned whether the submission preserved the revenue sharing model for all players, what actual percentage went to men, women, grass roots and administrators and whether CA had provided "sufficient financial information" through the negotiations. "For the moment, what can be said is that this proposal shows a number of promising signs that indicate that CA has been taking the ACA's lead on various key points from our MOU submission," Nicholson said.



"However, with a lack of detail in the terms and conditions that underpin this proposal, the ACA will continue to seek clarification from CA and advise the players on this accordingly." The current MOU expires on June 30, just weeks after the revamped Champions Trophy is held in England.

Australia's next series after that is the yet-to-be confirmed tour of Bangladesh from early August, where two Tests and three one-day internationals have been slated, pending safety and security clearance. The Southern Stars have the women's World Cup in England from July. If CA and the ACA do not come to an agreement before these events, players, as revealed by Fairfax Media, could go on a series-by-series contract, or even consider a boycott. Players have been fighting hard to ensure state cricketers remained part of the percentage scheme, with star Australian batsman and ACA executive member Aaron Finch reiterating that stance on Tuesday before CA's offer was revealed. Asked what action the players would be prepared to take should their hopes not be met, Finch replied: "That's a good question ... that [domestic players] is probably the biggest issue of the MOU so far, from our side of it, and the women's MOU is also very high on the priority list." In its initial submission, CA said state men's total remuneration have grown by more than 50 per cent in the past four years, averaging $234,000 this season, and this could not be sustained.

Discussions between the ACA and CA - when they have gone ahead - have been tense, with CA moving to win over skipper Smith and his deputy, Warner. "We have placed the emphasis on increasing the guaranteed amount that the men will receive, rather than rely on any projected increase in revenue," Sutherland said. "Yes, it is a variation from a model that has stood the test of time over the course of the last 20 years but, in our view, it is a model that has served its purpose. It is a model that is now outdated."