Cricket Australia (CA) Tuesday announced a restructuring of the contracting system for women players which will result in the Australian female cricketers becoming some of the best paid female athletes in the country.
CA approved a restructure of the contract system with a move from a three-tier payment system to a squad-ranking system. The top player retainer increases substantially from $15,000 to $52,000 and the minimum retainer increases from $5,000 to $25,000.
Tour payments for the players also increase from $100 to $250 per day. With 85 tour days within the next year, players have the potential to earn more than $20,000 in tour payment earnings on top of their contract retainer payments.
With this restructuring, Australian top female cricketers have the potential to earn approximately $70,000 - $80,000 in the next 12 months.
CA chief executive officer (CEO) James Sutherland said: "The Australian women's cricketers devote a huge amount of time and energy into being the No.1 team in the world in all formats and we feel that this is a landmark step in recognising their commitment and contribution to cricket as Australia's favourite sport.
"We are still working towards the day when Australia's female cricketers will be able to earn a full-time, professional living from cricket. But the performances of our female stars justify this step and the day will come when future, full-time professional female cricketers will look back and thank those who went before them."