Funds on the way for Sri Lankan players

Calcutta (The Tele-graph): Sri Lanka’s cricketers are yet to see a cent from their tour of Australia and played Friday’s match out of contract, but there has been movement in a pay dispute with their board, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

Also the Australian Cricketers’ Association and Cricket Australia, discussing the next pay deal, are yet to sign a memorandum of understanding for this summer, though all players have binding contracts.

Sri Lanka’s cricketers are just days away from receiving more than $5 million in outstanding payments dating back to last year’s World Cup.

That payment will cover the players until January 31 but does not include money owed to them by the cash-strapped governing body for the eight tri-series matches they have played this summer.

The Sri Lankan government has approved a $5.07m loan from a state-owned bank to the board, allowing Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) to wire funds to their players.

The money is yet to be credited to the players’ accounts but “hopefully it will be done on Monday”, the general secretary of the Sri Lanka Cricketers’ Association (SLCA), Ken de Alwis, said.