Sri Lanka Cricket announces wage hike for cricketers

After reaping record profits, the Board raised the salaries of national cricketers by 34 percent.

Sri Lanka had poor on-field results in 2017.

Wages for Sri Lankan cricketers were raised by one-third by Sri Lanka Cricket on Wednesday. Thirty-three players under Board contract will also see match fee increase substantially despite dismal results on the field last year.

The move comes after the Board had announced record profits of USD 14 million in 2017 . In a statement, the Board said, “Sri Lanka Cricket raised the wages of national players by 34 percent for the period of 2018-19, following strong results achieved during the concluded financial year.”

SLC did not give a breakdown of individual salaries, but the cricketers are known to be among the highest paid individuals in Sri Lanka.

Packed calendar

Official sources attributed the sharp profit rise to a packed 2017 calendar which featured home series against Bangladesh, India and Zimbabwe. Broadcasting earnings from an India tour were thought to be a major contributor.

The cash bonanza was the only good news from an otherwise woeful period for Sri Lankan cricket; the islanders endured their worst year on the pitch since winning the World Cup in 1996.

They suffered a series defeat against India, lost a home one-day series to bottom-ranked Zimbabwe and crashed out of the Champions Trophy early.