The Hundred has officially been postponed following yesterday's ECB board meeting, but there are questions to answer regarding players contracts.
The 2020 contract players signed after last October's draft were composed of two parts: a player appearance contract and an employment contract. Players have received around 5% of their overall fee to date and were due to receive a total of 20% of their fees before the tournament's planned launch in mid-July.
ESPNcricinfo reported that players are yet to be told the final sum they will receive this year, but the fact the competition has been postponed this far in advance will likely reduce it, as that money was due to be paid pro rata based on date.
Some of the top earners in the men's competition could still be paid around £15,000 without playing a game, the ECB will save the majority of the £9 million it was due to pay in player wages this year (£8m to men's squads, £1m to women's). A further £1.7 million had been put aside for the salaries of coaches and support staff, the majority of which will be saved.
Some players, including Tymal Mills and Harry Gurney, had taken out insurance on their contracts, but are unlikely to receive a full payout since most policies only cover injuries and rely on the tournament being played.
The Professional Cricketers Association is working collaboratively with the ECB and some senior players involved in The Hundred to iron out the details.
"Those discussions are under way," Tom Harrison, the ECB's chief executive, told the BBC. "The contracts contemplate situations like this - obviously not the exact situation, but we do have the ability to have those discussions through what is written down in the contracts."
John Stephenson
john@cricketinvestor.co.uk
