“Having Cricket In Olympics Opens Up Utterly Completely different Viewers”: Ricky Ponting

Legendary Australia cricketer Ricky Ponting mentioned having cricket within the 2028 Olympic Video games on the Los Angeles will simply open up a very totally different viewers for the sport. Cricket final featured within the Olympics in 1900, and the game is ready to make its long-awaited comeback on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Cricket was among the many 5 further sports activities proposed by the LA28 Organising Committee for inclusion alongside baseball-softball, flag soccer, lacrosse and squash.

The Worldwide Olympic Committee (IOC) formally confirmed cricket’s inclusion on the 141st IOC Session held in Mumbai in October final 12 months. “It may possibly solely be a constructive factor for our sport. I’ve sat on varied committees during the last 15 or 20 years and it is at all times been on the highest of just about each agenda – how will we get the sport again into the Olympics? And eventually, it is there.”

“It is solely 4 years away. As soon as once more, within the US by that stage, hopefully, with MLC (Main League Cricket), one other 4 years down the monitor hopefully rising. Who is aware of, there may even be extra groups within the MLC by then. I believe it additionally offers cricket an opportunity to interrupt into the grassroots degree within the US.”

“However the factor in regards to the Olympic Video games, I imply, it isn’t the host nation. It is in regards to the viewers that it opens up. The Olympic Video games being considered by so many individuals all world wide, it simply opens up fully totally different audiences to our sport that is seemingly rising each day anyway. It may possibly solely be an actual constructive factor for the sport,” mentioned Ponting within the newest episode of The ICC Evaluation present.

Ponting, the three-time ODI World Cup winner, just lately coached the Washington Freedom, to this 12 months’s Main League Cricket title, and had a good thought of how cricket is considered within the USA. “Amenities and infrastructure and people issues are going to be key and what number of groups they really determine on. I believe it is solely six or seven groups that they are speaking about.”

“So qualification goes to be at a premium, the way you really qualify to get into the Olympic Video games. So all these issues to consider, I am actually enthusiastic about the place the sport’s headed and the expansion of various markets that we’re seeing emerge,” he added on the state of MLC.

Ponting additionally highlighted how cricket can use baseball’s fanbase to draw consideration and increase its reputation. “And the best way that I form of attempt to examine the 2 is we have all been to video games of Main League Baseball. Big occasions, the bat and ball sport that Individuals are rising up with and that sport goes for 4 hours and thru the historical past of the sport, there’s lower than one dwelling run scored in each sport.”

“So once you examine baseball to what the joy and leisure package deal that T20 cricket brings, then it ought to be a fairly simple promote to the younger children within the US. In order that’d be the angle that I might be actually pushing is simply the joy issue that comes with the sport. And I believe in the event that they try this, then I believe it’s extremely sustainable.”

“There’s large alternatives for progress, even with the Indian funding in MLC and the way eager they’re to remain concerned and make it large and switch Washington Freedom right into a family title in world cricket. Then I believe there are some nice alternatives there.”

Ponting signed off by being excited in regards to the prospect of serving as both a mentor or coach for the Australian crew on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. “It would be a fairly good job, I reckon, to be a mentor round a cricket crew within the Olympic Video games, to hang around. I used to be fortunate sufficient to play within the Commonwealth Video games and simply to be across the athletes within the villages and stuff was fairly a surreal surroundings to be in for a cricketer.”

“So, look, I would not say no, however I believe there will be lots of people placing their fingers as much as attempt to be a mentor or a coach for an Aussie crew within the Olympic Video games. It would be particular to be part of, so who is aware of? We’ll preserve my fingers crossed and see what occurs.”

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