Gilchrist earnings set to reach US $1 million a year

Adam Gilchrist is poised to sign a bat sponsorship deal which will make him the first Australian cricketer to earn US $1million a year, The West Australian newspaper reported on Saturday.

The deal with sports goods company Puma, worth $150,000 a year, makes the Australian vice-captain the second highest-earning cricketer in the game, behind Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar, who earns 10 times as much, the daily newspaper said.

Gilchrist's Australian team mates, captain Steve Waugh, leg-spinner Shane Warne and fast bowlers Brett Lee and Glenn McGrath, all earn $500,000 a year, the report said.

Gilchrist, 30, Australia's wicketkeeper and number seven batsman who opens in the one-day internationals, earns a third of his income from cricket payments and the rest in sponsorships and endorsements, the report said.

"The sponsorships are great but Adam is mindful that cricket is where it starts and that, if it is not his priority, the other things could become redundant," Gilchrist's manager Stephen Atkinson was quoted as saying.

"He is a senior member of the highest profile national team in Australia, but his qualities as a person and his reliability are what make him stand out."

Gilchrist said cricket was his first priority.

"If I am not focused on my cricket, it is not beneficial to anyone -- me, the team or the sponsors," he said.

"But sponsorships can open up various avenues after cricket, and I hope to establish long-term partnerships with my sponsors that will continue after I have finished playing."

Mail Cricket Editor