Australian all-rounder James Faulkner has lambasted his former Big Bash League (BBL) team Hobart Hurricanes after contract talks between him and the club broke down.
Speaking on Jack and Painey show on SEN Hobart, Faulkner said a disrespectful and embarrassing offer led to him leaving Hurricanes.
"I'm obviously not on board (at the Hurricanes). It is very disappointing. I wanted to be a part of the Hurricanes and represented Tasmania. I'm just shattered at how it's all played out," the 31-year-old said.
"They brought an initial offer to my manager… he was embarrassed to bring it (to me). I found that pretty hard to take when I first heard it on the phone -- found it pretty disrespectful for what I've given to Tasmanian cricket. I've put my heart and soul into it. To hear the initial offer… it cut pretty deep," he added.
Faulkner, whose last appearance for Australia was in 2017, is still furious over how Hurricanes treated him when contract renewal talks came over.
"It's all OK for them to say they want me, but when they offered what they did, it was very clear that they didn't want me. They just left me in the background after they promised they were going to sort of it. They actually called me in before I went to the Pakistan Super League to apologise, and it still never got sorted out," he explained.
"They did offer a couple of (more) times. It was the initial offer and not feeling wanted - I know what I'm worth. I didn't want more, I just wanted what was fair and maybe a little less. It comes back to that first offer - I didn't feel respected as a player or as a person or a Tasmanian."
James Faulkner, who was the Player-of-the-Match in the 2015 ODI World Cup final against New Zealand, also expressed his disappointment over head coach Adam Griffith's indifferent attitude towards him.
"They used injury against me the whole time which is quite disappointing. Last season I had an eight-week hamstring and I tried to come back in three-and-a-half weeks and put my body on the line to come back so we had a shot at making finals. For the coach to use that against me I felt was wrong.
"People don't really know the whole story, but that cut me deep when I heard that on the news the other night. I've never had an issue with Cricket Tasmania, the board, the players and the supporters - I've loved every part of being a Tasmanian cricketer. Through this negotiation with certain people there's been a breakdown in relationship."
Faulkner featured in 12 of 29 matches in the last two BBL seasons. In the last season, he picked up a severe hamstring injury which ended his campaign in December.
"When you watch the news, and you see who I thought was one of my mates as well as the head coach say the bowling group and the team have performed well without me and that we need to move on and that he didn't really care - that's like sticking a knife straight in my back."
"There's no other way for me to continue to be playing (in BBL). I'll be playing in the Pakistan Super League again, and I'm playing in the T10s in Abu Dhabi, and then hopefully Sri Lanka as well and whatever else pops up," he concluded.
(With IANS inputs)
