There has never been a more interesting time to be a cricketer. The tectonic plates are shifting. Free agency has entered the fray. Private ownership looms large on the horizon. Footballers are becoming cricketers. Cricketers are coalescing in skate parks and travelling in Hummers. Allegiances are being tested. Each player is being forced to decide where their priorities lie.

Evan Gulbis can attest to the various pulls and pushes of the contemporary game. The 25-year-old all-rounder, whose strengths play to the shorter forms of the game, has had several states vying for his services in recent months. He's now a gun for hire. Each state offered a slightly different package. He elected to cross Bass Straight to join Tasmania after being offered one of only 15 full-time contracts.

''Tasmania has a really strong and proven program,'' he affirms. ''When they showed me some interest I jumped at the opportunity.''

''This is going to be the first season in which I exist solely on my cricket salary,'' he told BackPageLead.

Gulbis - who was mentored by the late John Scholes early in his career - grew up idolising Mark Waugh for his elegance, balance and timing at the crease. He made his debut for Carlton in Victorian Premier Cricket at the tender age of 17.

He first believed that he belonged as a professional cricketer when he scored consecutive centuries against St Kilda and Dandenong, the previous season's grand finalists. The second of the centuries - 159 off just 112 balls - included 15 sixes. He was only 21 at the time.

Gulbis broke into the Victorian side last season, playing three Ford Ranger Cup matches and two games in the Big Bash. Despite having a taste of the action with the Bushrangers, he felt that his cricket would flourish in the Apple Isle.

''Tasmania and Hobart (Hurricanes) have given me a greater opportunity to play in all three forms of the game,'' he said.

This was something which Victoria simply couldn't offer the talented stroke-maker. If he had remained at home, he would have faced a tough tussle with emerging cricketer Alex Keath for a place in the Shield side.

Cricket Victoria went to great depths to secure Keath's signature. He resisted overtures from the Gold Coast Suns to play in the AFL. Gulbis bears no grudge against Keath: ''Alex is a fantastically talented young player. He is going to be given a lot of opportunities and that would obviously limit them for me.''

Since moving states, Gulbis has experienced the shifting terrain of world cricket firsthand. Several of his Tasmanian teammates - including skipper George Bailey - won't be representing Hobart during the six-week Big Bash window.

One of those teammates, James Faulkner, recently signed with the Melbourne Stars franchise. While Gulbis admits that there has been some friendly banter around the change rooms, he is adamant that there is no resentment about the discrepancy in players' wages.

''I think everyone is very understanding about situations like James,'' he said. ''Cricket these days is a big business and the new franchises have created some good opportunities for players to forge a career and secure their future.''

Like most emerging cricketers in the country, Gulbis is keen to pursue opportunities to play overseas should they arise. He would love to play in the Indian Premier League in the coming years: ''To play in India in front of such passionate and fanatical supporters would be exhilarating.''

In the shorter term, Gulbis hopes to secure a place in Tasmania's side in both forms of the game, preferably as a batting all-rounder. Despite the lures of the IPL and playing cricket abroad, he has only one ultimate goal.

''The Baggy Green will always be the pinnacle of the game. I don't think that anything could compare to it,'' he said.