IN A stark contrast with the boot camp that preceded the most recent Ashes series, Cricket Australia has invited wives and girlfriends to a team camp before the players leave for England, to help ease the strain on family life caused by long periods away from home.

"It is unchartered territory," said CA operations manager Michael Brown. "We are in an unprecedented period of playing cricket and we are conscious of the number of new players into the team and the number of new partners, young families, newly married players. It is a great opportunity for us to take a more holistic approach to welfare, management, relationships and [to] work with some experts."

The need to balance touring and family life has been a burning issue for CA and the Australian Cricketers Association, which said the joint effort to look after the families was "one of the biggest issues for us" in new pay deal negotiations.

Chloe Saltau