Photo Credit: LinkedIn Profile Photo of Richard Gould
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) must “defend our game,” according to chief executive Richard Gould, in response to criticism from the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA).
Tensions between the ECB and the PCA center on new rules regarding overseas league participation and salary adjustments in The Hundred.
On Thursday, PCA chief executive Daryl Mitchell criticized the ECB, citing a “lack of communication and consultation” and a “lack of respect to the players.”
Gould explained to BBC Sport: “Our responsibility is for a very wide pool of players. Some of the comments will come from a very small part of any membership. We need to listen to them – and we will – but we also need to balance them up to the needs of the game.
“We need to defend our game. We need to take it forward and there will be times it takes precedence over the priorities of an individual.”
The ECB announced an increase in the men’s Hundred’s highest pay band from £125,000 to £200,000 for the 2025 season, aiming to attract top global talent. However, the smallest salary increase, from £30,000 to £31,000, has drawn criticism for disproportionately benefiting marquee players, often from overseas, rather than domestic players.
Gould acknowledged the disparity, describing the changes as an “interim position” pending new investments from the planned sale of stakes in the eight Hundred franchises.
“I understand the criticism because there will be a number of players, particularly in the men’s side, that were hoping for bigger increases,” he said.
“For the higher price bands for the men’s game we have put more money into that because in the last few years we haven’t seen enough of the top 50 male players in the world. We want to see more of them. Therefore we need to be paying more. We’ve taken that money and focused it in that area.”
The highest women’s salary will rise to £65,000 in 2025, up from £15,000 at The Hundred’s inception in 2021. However, the salary gap between men and women has widened despite a 2023 recommendation by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket for equal pay by 2025.
“The gap has got bigger because of market dynamics,” said Gould. “That wasn’t a recommendation we said we could deliver on, and we have been very upfront about that.”
The ECB is introducing stricter no-objection certificate (NOC) rules starting in 2025. Players contracted for red-ball county cricket will not receive NOCs to play in overseas leagues during the English season, except for the Indian Premier League (IPL).
This policy likely excludes participation in the Pakistan Super League, which overlaps with the IPL and the start of the English summer. Players with white-ball-only contracts can still obtain NOCs, while cases involving dual-contract players will be evaluated individually.
“We need to protect our summer,” said Gould. “When we have players under contract we want to encourage them to remain and play in our competitions. If they chose to become a complete freelancer, that’s absolutely fine.
“We don’t want to be issuing no-objection certificates for people to play in tournaments when we’ve got great tournaments for them to play in.”
Gould also confirmed plans to sell stakes in all eight Hundred franchises, with “multiple parties” expressing interest in each team.
Regarding the 2025 Champions Trophy, currently uncertain due to India’s refusal to travel to host nation Pakistan, Gould expects the tournament to proceed in February as scheduled.
“Location is the one that is still being worked through,” he said. “Quite sensibly, both Pakistan and India will be given a bit of time and space to work through those options.
“The value of Pakistan and India in global events is enormous and we want to make sure they’re playing.”
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Name of Author: Cricexec Staff
