The World Cup will begin exactly one month from today, on September 5. The International Cricket Council (ICC) in Dubai may be forgiven for briefly diverting its attention away from the stormy build-up to India’s biggest event. Its focus is likely to be on the 2028 Olympics, which will take place five years from now.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) executive board will make a critical decision about cricket’s inclusion in the Los Angeles Games in just three days, on Friday (September 8). Cricbuzz spoke with ICC members who ooze nervous optimism. “Fingers crossed,” said one ICC member on Monday. “If everything goes as planned, we should know by the end of the week.”
A recent comment by IOC President Thomas Bach is a boost for the ICC, which has been actively advocating for cricket’s participation in the Olympics for the previous two years. “I love cricket and have even tried my hand at it. I was in Fiji at the time. We were crossing a sports field. Women were playing cricket in Fiji. Then my publicist, who is a huge cricket fan, walked over and said, “Now you have to play.” So we went to see this female cricket squad. And they let me play with them for a few minutes, ” the IOC president recently told India’s CNBC TV.
Live Cricket Score learned that the 15-member Executive Board, which includes Bach, four vice presidents, and ten other members, will meet on Friday in Lausanne, Switzerland, to consider a request from the LA 28 Games organising committee on the inclusion of new sports. The board’s decision will need to be ratified at the IOC Session in Mumbai next month (15-17). The likelihood of LA 28 choosing cricket is strong.
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