Gender pay gap in Big Bash cricket highlights ongoing wage parity issues

Cricket is leading the way in gender pay parity – except if you’re an international Big Bash draftee, where women will be asked to do more for way less than the men.

In the never-ending debate about pay parity for women in sport, these are the figures that illustrate the gender gap that still exists in cricket despite it being one sport that could argue it is leading the way in this field.

While Cricket Australia has rightly trumpeted the fact this year’s WBBL salary cap has doubled on previous seasons, a quick glance at the salaries being offered international players in Sunday’s draft for this season’s men’s and women’s T20 tournaments make for an interesting debate.

The women are playing more games, but earning far less.

This year’s WBBL tournament will feature 14 games per team, while the reduced schedule for the men means that each BBL club will only play 10 regular season games.

WBBL players have 40% more games on the schedule for the 2023-24 season than BBL players. Picture: Graham Denholm/Getty Images for Cricket Australia

But with a 40 per cent higher workload, a platinum international WBBL draftee will earn $110,000.

A platinum international BBL draftee will earn $420,000.

That’s almost four times the pay for four fewer games of cricket.

Or $42,000 per game compared to $7857 per game.

Only bronze level BBL draftees, those taken in the final rounds, will earn less than the most valuable women’s players with their salaries set at $100,000 – which still equates to $10,000 per game.

And it’s not like the BBL has attracted a higher calibre of player when you consider the current ICC T20 world rankings.

Just six of the 25 players listed as men’s platinum contract draftees are currently featured in the top 10 rankings including world No.1 bowler Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Dawid Malan, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Rizwan and Rilee Rossouw.

In the women’s platinum player pool, 10 of the 25 are currently ranked in the top 10 of ICC T20 rankings.

When combined with the fact Australia’s men’s Test stars cannot play in this year’s BBL due to schedule conflicts, but every member of the all-conquering women’s national side is ready for WBBL action, it’s clear this women’s tournament is a truly world-class competition.

It is part of the reason why Cricket Australia is boldly attempting to take WBBL to major stadiums this season, in a bid to further unlock commercial growth of the women’s game.

WBBL09 stands to be the biggest season yet for the league. Picture: Hanna Lassen/Getty Images for Cricket Australia

Cricket Australia, at least, acknowledges it is only just starting the journey towards pay parity in their sport.

“Cricket now clearly offers the best earning opportunities of any team sport for elite female sportspeople,” Cricket Australia boss Nick Hockley said when announcing their new pay deals earlier this year.

“We are on a path, we are not there yet.

“But we have taken a major step forward in closing the gap.”

Like all sports, they are positive yet still just baby steps.

For when the numbers are stacked side-by-side, as is the case with Sunday’s international player draft, it still evident for all to see the playing field remains far from ideal.

Originally published as Gender pay gap in Big Bash cricket highlights ongoing wage parity issues