The New Zealand Cricket Players' Association (NZCPA) has said that its cricketers will sign the controversial International Cricket Council (ICC) contract ahead of next month's ICC Champions Trophy. There was little to prevent the New Zealand players signing, as none of them had personal contracts with companies which clashed with the official tournament sponsors. For several other high-profile cricketers the issue is not so simple and, so far, they have refused to sign.

England, Australia and India have individuals who have indicated that they are unhappy at being asked to push their own sponsors to one side, and are considering whether they will withdraw from the tournament. Aside from the financial and moral issues, some of them believe it would leave them open for legal action as they would be breaching their existing contracts.

David Graveney, chief executive of the English Professional Cricketers' Association, said that some concessions from ICC would clear the way for the matter to be resolved. Tim May, chief executive of the Australian Cricketers' Association, met with the Australian Cricket Board on Thursday and was confident of reaching a compromise, while Indian officials were considering offering compensation to players who lose out as a result of signing the ICC contract.

But ICC has, so far, shown no inclination to offer any concessions and has maintained that there is nothing to discuss. Earlier this week it sent a blunt reminder to all the national boards that they are committed to sending their strongest sides to the tournament - failure to do so could leave ICC open to legal action from angry sponsors.

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