Australian cricketers offer AUD 2 million to help clubs affected by bushfire

Australian cricketers are offering up to AUD 2 million through the Grassroots Cricket Fund to support cricket clubs and cricket communities which were affected by the bushfire.

The fund will help those clubs and communities to get back on their feet.

The Fund - set aside by the players from their share of the game's revenue - has already helped support a number of cricket clubs impacted by drought and is administered by the Australian Cricketers' Association and Cricket Australia.

All the contribution will go towards the Community Bushfire Recovery Fund established by Cricket Australia (CA) and is in addition to the AUD 2 million CA has already contributed to support impacted clubs and associations across Australia.

CEO of Cricket Australia, Kevin Roberts said thanked the players for their' generous commitment' to the clubs.

"The thoughts of the Australian cricket family are with the many communities who have been impacted by the recent bushfire emergency. As the fire situation is still an active threat in several areas across the country, the assessment process of impacted communities will take some time before we are able to assess the detail of support from the Community Bushfire Recovery Fund," Roberts said in a statement.

"The resilience of cricket clubs and their members who have played their part in assisting with the relief and recovery efforts in their communities has been tremendous. We thank the players for their generous commitment to clubs which will undoubtedly have a lasting impact," he added.

CEO of the Australian Cricketers' Association, Alistair Nicholson, termed cricket clubs as the 'social structures of their communities' and said it is crucial that clubs exist and prosper.

"Cricket clubs are the social structures of their communities. They connect people with each other, so it's crucial for everyone that clubs right around the country exist and prosper. The players have been taken aback by the scale and devastation of this disaster and have already shown incredible generosity from their own pockets by donating to a variety of bushfire relief causes both publicly and privately," Nicholson said.

"The $2 million contribution draws from the Grassroots Cricket Fund through which players have committed $30 million over the next five years to give back to the communities that have shaped the players into the cricketers they are today," Nicholson added.