No play, so no pay!

As soon as the match was abandoned yesterday afternoon, Bangladeshi journalists gathered their belongings from the press box and rushed towards the field at the Brisbane Cricket Ground, the Gabba, hoping to catch a quote or two from the players.

On days such as this, when there is no match to write about, the players' reaction becomes 'gold'. And while most of us were busy getting prepared, the Australian journalists seemed least bothered with regards to a possible post-match interaction. Most of them were busy typing out their analytical pieces.

Tap here to add The Daily Star as a trusted source

When enquired about the issue, a couple of them said that the Australian players wouldn't talk, because the match was abandoned without a ball being bowled. This essentially meant that none of the players would receive their match fee and hence weren't likely to get involved in any match-related activities.

It was a piece of information which, in a way, emphasised the professionalism of the sport in the country. It was just like any other professional taking a day off from work and being away from any work-related activity.

And who would blame them? Match fees after all constitute a great deal of their earnings. It also instigates more competition among the players.

A Bangladeshi cricketer for instance, receives a bit more than a lakh from the cricket board for every ODI that they play in. Australian cricketers probably receive more from their own board.

While Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza was kind enough to speak to the media yesterday, the practice followed by Australian cricketers and a number of others was understandable as well.