Veteran spinner R Ashwin on Saturday (August 20) pointed out the staggering disparity in earnings between India and Zimbabwe cricketers.

Ashwin, who is currently part of Rajasthan Royals squad in the IPL, cited that the entire prize money of Zimbabwe's T20 league is even less than the base price of Indian Premier League (IPL) players.

The seasoned off-spinner gave the example of Shahbaz Ahmed to validate his point.

"Read an amazing article on the world cricket scenario. It says that wherever there is more money, employment opportunities are better and there are better chances of players flourishing. For example, India has sent a 15-member squad to Zimbabwe. Washington Sundar got injured and Shahbaz Ahmed has been sent as a last-minute replacement," Ashwin said while speaking on his YouTube channel.

"Shahbaz Ahmed is sitting on a good contract at RCB. I don’t know his exact salary details, but he must be definitely earning in crores. On the other hand, the entire prize money of Zimbabwe’s T20 league, which is called the National Premier League (NPL) is $10,000 (₹8.50 lakh). Even the base price of Indian players for the IPL is more (Rs 20 lakh)," he explained.

However, Ashwin feels Zimbabwe cricket has a bright future because of the way they emerged out of the financial crisis.

"At one point in time, Zimbabwe were unable to pay salaries to their players. But after the new administration took over, they cleared past dues. There has been some kind of resurgence in Zimbabwe cricket. So, if Zimbabwe does well in this series, they will get accolades, and it will be good for their cricket," he said.

In the ongoing thee-match ODI series, Zimbabwe have lost the first two ODIs to India and already conceded an unassailable 2-0 lead.

The third and final ODI is due to be held at Harare Sports Club on Monday (August 20).