Wellington, July 24: Six New Zealand cricketers including skipper Daniel Vettori have signed the new contracts for the 2009-10 season, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) said on Friday.
The players, who represent their respective teams in the lucrative Indian Premier League were given extra time to make a decision as their was a clash in the schedule of the IPL and the players’ national commitments.
Other players to have signed the contract include Brendon McCullum, Kyle Mills, Jesse Ryder, Jacob Oram and Ross Taylor.
IPL’s third season, which kicks off in March next year will clash with the schedule of Australia’s tour of New Zealand.
“This is an admirable decision by each of these individuals and they should be applauded for it. By signing their contracts they are sacrificing significant sums of money,” chief executive of NZC Justin Vaughan said.
“Their decision helps to reinforce international cricket as the pinnacle of our sport, and clearly shows that representing New Zealand remains the biggest motivating factor for our leading players. We appreciate this issue may recur again and the onus is on international cricket to proactively search for solutions so that players are not forced to make such difficult decisions in the future.”
—-Agencies