Frustrated and unemployed Australian cricketers will meet in Sydney on Sunday after the ongoing pay spat plunged to an unprecedented low.
The brinkmanship building between Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) for months finally ignited on Friday.
The most recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) is due to expire at midnight on Friday.
CA has confirmed there is no prospect of a new MoU being finalised by the deadline, leaving more than 200 cricketers unemployed.
"This may place significant financial and emotional strain on them (players) and their families," CA noted in a statement.
"It is unfortunate that the ACA's hardline and inflexible position has not been conducive to delivering any positive outcomes or certainty for players."
There hasn't been such an immense stoush between officials and players in Australia since the first MoU was struck 20 years ago.
CA has paid the women's World Cup squad in advance for the entire tournament, so the most pressing series at risk is next month's Australia A trip to South Africa.
Players were set to assemble in Brisbane for training on Monday but a tour boycott, unprecedented action that would require every player on multi-year state deals to strike, is now on the cards.
The tour will be one of many topics discussed when players meet on Sunday.
The governing body and union remain deadlocked over the issue of revenue sharing.
There were hopes CA boss James Sutherland, who recently returned home from England, could broker a last-minute temporary solution that would save the sport a degree of ignominy.
But the relationship between players and CA remained frosty on Friday, when the union released a video featuring star paceman Josh Hazlewood.
"It's (pay talks) never got to this point before in the past. It's going to leave a bit of a bitter taste," Hazlewood said.
"We are obviously willing to do what we need to."
Hazlewood added that domestic players would have every right to "feel disrespected" by CA in negotiations.
The right-armer also clipped CA officials for attempting to sign him and other stars on individual contracts earlier this year.
"It was a bit of a shock. Just the way it came about, they said they weren't going to offer contracts until the MoU had been finalised," he said.
CA player liaison manager Simon Katich knows modern-day stars risk incurring the fury of supporters.
"It's a shame it has to go down that path because the players are Cricket Australia's biggest assets," former Test opener Katich told Fox Sports.
"It's a shame they are putting them in this position. What sort of employer does that to their employees?"
This summer's Ashes will be at threat if the situation is not advanced before November.
