Pat Cummins and Travis Head reject Rs 58.46-cr offer to stay loyal to Australian cricket

Guwahati: Australia’s Test and ODI captain Pat Cummins and star batter Travis Head have reportedly turned down a massive AUD 10 million (Rs 58.46 crore) per year offer to quit national duties and play in overseas T20 leagues full-time.

According to a report by the Sydney Morning Herald, an IPL franchise group made the lucrative approach, but both players declined, choosing to remain committed to representing Australia.
Their management teams, however, have not commented on the reports.

Currently, Australia’s top cricketers earn around AUD 1.5 million (Rs 8.76 crore) annually through central contracts. Cummins, with his captaincy bonus, makes approximately AUD 3 million (Rs 17.52 crore).

Both players also feature among the highest earners in the Indian Premier League (IPL) — Cummins drawing Rs 18 crore and Head Rs 14 crore for the 2025 season, both playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).

The report further highlights ongoing discussions between Cricket Australia, state associations, and the players’ union to privatise the Big Bash League (BBL).

The proposal aims to attract private investment and increase player salaries, linking the BBL to the growing global network of franchise-based T20 leagues.

The offers made to Cummins and Head underscore the shifting dynamics of world cricket, where lucrative franchise contracts are increasingly luring top international players away from national commitments.

In recent times, England pacer Jofra Archer was also offered a $7.5 million all-year contract by Mumbai Indians (MI) to forgo international cricket — an offer he declined. Meanwhile, South Africa’s Heinrich Klaasen took the opposite route, announcing his retirement from international cricket earlier this year to focus entirely on T20 leagues.

As franchise cricket continues to expand globally, national boards — especially those with limited financial resources — face growing challenges in retaining their star players, even as wealthier boards like the BCCI, ECB, and Cricket Australia strive to keep their talent grounded in international cricket.