IPL cricketers set to earn more next year

If you thought that the IPl cricketers were earning more then you are in for a shocker. After the success of the first edition IPL commitee is set to remove the $5 million cap on the spending of the team on the players next year.

"If we hadn't done that, I can tell you that our players would already be the highest-paid across any sport in the world," IPL chairman and commissioner Lalit Modi was quoted as saying in 'The Daily Telegraph' .

"It will happen - if not today, then tomorrow. Because once the franchises have established themselves, it will be a free-for-all," he added.

The report stated some leading Australian cricketers like Matthew Hayden and Brett Lee can expect a several-fold hike in their pays when they go back to play the next season after their short stints this time.

Indian ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who fetched the maximum bidding price of Rs 6 crore this season, reportedly told a senior Australian player last week that extraordinary contracts of up to $14-15 million were likely to be introduced by the next season.

Hayden confirmed that players were up for a financial windfall when the next season of the IPL gets underway.

"From what I have heard, some of the stuff (payments) this year could be just the tip of the iceberg," Hayden said.