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Sydney, Apr.18 (ANI): Carrying the drinks was the closest New South Wales fast bowler Burt Cockley came to representing Australia in India last year, but he has been compensated financially for the injury he suffered on that tour.

Cockley will earn 110,000 dollars from Cricket Australia - despite not having bowled a ball in anger for almost a year.

He was picked to replace Peter Siddle during last November’s one-day series in India, and earns 5000 dollars every time the Australian one-day team plays due to an injury clause in Australian player contracts.

The powerfully built 24-year-old was expected to make his debut in the final game of the seven-match series in Mumbai, but the match was abandoned due to rain before the selectors named the team.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, his summer was written off because of stress fractures to his back, but he’s benefiting from a deal which ensures players injured while on national duty don’t suffer financial hardship.

‘I don’t play cricket for money. ‘Some people ask, ‘How good is the cash’ but all I see is the baggy green [cap] … it’s what I want most out of the game. The injury payments have helped a lot. It’s the result of a system that I think shows care for the player. Cricket Australia hasn’t put me on the sideline and said, ‘Look after yourself and see you when you get back’ - they’ve helped me a lot,’ Cockley said.

The stress fractures follow the bulging disc injury which forced him out of the Australia A team which played Pakistan’s A side last year, and it denied him a second stint in the Indian Premier League.

‘It’s been a very tough eight months,’ he said. ‘I was picked for the IPL and returned with a bulging disc. I worked on my action and while it came good, it was still a bit mixed. I came back that little bit too early and while I bowled well it probably wasn’t as good as what I am capable of,” he said.

Cockley is spending the off-season rebuilding his body through boxing, weights, yoga, running and three net sessions a week under the direction of state bowling coach Matt Nicholson. (ANI)