Pay-hike demand may make Aussies unpopular: former players

Melbourne (PTI): Australian cricketers demanding a pay-hike to compensate for the gruelling season next year may end up being perceived money-minded grumblers, former Test stars like Ian Healy have warned.

Ricky Ponting and his men are currently negotiating their contracts for next season, which might see them being away from home for almost 11 months.

Vice-captain Michael Clarke has insisted that the amount of cricket, in addition to various sponsorship duties, has begun to take a toll on the players' lives at home as they spend more and more time away from families.

Former wicketkeeper Healy agreed that top stars are playing a lot of cricket but insisted that they are being paid rather well by Cricket Australia and they risk becoming unpopular by openly asking for hikes.

"Perception is better than the truth in many cases. They are playing more games, but they are pretty well paid," Healy was quoted as saying by 'The Daily Telegraph'.