Gilchrist doesn't want boycott

PERTH, Aug 14 AAP - Australian vice-captain Adam Gilchrist hopes player threats to boycott next month's Champions Trophy and next year's World Cup over a sponsorship wrangle can be quickly resolved.

His comments today came as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) indicated it would send a second-string team to the Champions Trophy if its players didn't sign International Cricket Council (ICC) agreements for the Sri Lankan tournament.

Plans for the two major international one-day tournaments are up in the air after leading players associations, including the Australian Cricketers Association, advised members against signing player agreements for the Champions Trophy starting September 12.

The World Cup to be held early next year in South Africa faces a similar problem as the International Cricket Council will not budge on its efforts to protect major sponsors.

The stand-off could create a major headache for the sport's biggest names if players' personal endorsements conflicted with those of ICC-backed events.

Gilchrist, the 30-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman, said it was a delicate situation.

But he didn't think any cricketers truly wanted to boycott such major events and felt a viable solution would be found.

"I don't know the individual status on sponsors, but it is fair to say any cricketer doesn't like the word boycott in regards to any issue," he said.

"That is something that can hopefully be avoided.

"And as I said the administrators are there working through it so I'm sure we will come out with an equitable result."

Though the BCCI is officially falling in line with the ICC, there does seem to be an undercurrent of sympathy for the players according to India's Hindustan Times.

It said Indian players had met this week on tour and decided to continue to defy the BCCI.

Former Indian captain Ravi Shastri said the Indian cricketers should protect their interests.

"It is high time the players stand up for themselves," he told the Hindustan Times.

"As far as India is concerned it should send an under-19 team to the ICC Cup. That way the first casualty will be the ICC itself."

India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are the only three Test playing nations which don't have player associations.

One of the major grievances over the agreements is they restrict players' endorsement prospects up until 2007.

ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed said it was vital to protect against ambush marketing tactics because of the $1 billion worth of rights at stake at ICC events.

Speed has said national boards had agreed to certain personal endorsement and sponsorship restrictions for ICC events until 2007.