Cricket set to be included in 2028 Olympics after 128 years, ICC ‘delighted’

PTI, Oct 10, 2023, 9:22 AM IST

Cricket is set to be included in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic programme alongside flag football, baseball and softball, according to a report.

The Guardian reported that cricket’s inclusion in the Olympics will be confirmed at the 141st International Olympic Committee session that gets underway in Mumbai on October 15.

The International Cricket Council, in a statement, expressed delight at LA28 organising committee recommending the sport’s inclusion at the Summer Games.

“The International Cricket Council (ICC) is delighted at the decision of the organisers of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics to recommend cricket for inclusion at the Games.

“After a two-year process, in which the ICC worked closely with LA28, the list of sports to be added in LA included cricket, which will now be put forward for approval to the IOC,” said the ICC in a statement.

The newspaper also reported that lacrosse and squash could be proposed as additional sports for the 2028 Summer Games.

Cricket has been played in the Olympics only once before, in Paris in 1900, when England and France battled for the gold medal.

“We are delighted that LA28 have recommended cricket for inclusion in the Olympics.

“Whilst this is not the final decision, it is a very significant landmark towards seeing cricket at the Olympics for the first time in more than a century.

“I’d like to thank LA28 for their support during the new sport evaluation process over last two years and we look forward to the final decision being taken at the IOC Session, in India, during the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup next week,” ICC chairman Greg Barclay said.

Men’s and women’s T20 competition will be played in the 2028 edition, opening up a lucrative Asian sub-continent market for the IOC.

Cricket’s entry into the Olympics will also go a long way in widening the reach of the sport.

India is the game’s biggest market and value of the IOC broadcast deal in the country go up substantially following its inclusion in the 2028 edition.

From the reported 15.6 million pounds for the 2024 Olympics, the broadcast deal in India could fetch as much as 150 million pounds if the game is featured in 2028 edition, the paper reported.

Women’s cricket made its debut in Commonwealth Games last year while men’s and women’s competitions were played in the recent Asian Games in China where India swept the competition.