Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has spoken out about cricket’s return to the Olympics after a 128-year absence, saying it can only be a positive thing for a sport that is hugely popular in countries like India, England and Australia, but has yet to make much of an impact in other parts of the world. Ponting says the return of cricket to the Olympics will open up the sport to new audiences.
Speaking on The ICC Review, Ponting said, “It can only be a positive thing for our game. I’ve sat on various committees over the last 15 or 20 years, and it’s always been on the top of almost every agenda – how do we get the game back into the Olympics? And finally, it’s there… It’s only four years away. I think it also gives cricket a chance to break into the grassroots level in the US.”
“The thing about the Olympic Games, it’s not [about] the host nation. It’s about the audience that it opens up. The Olympic Games being viewed by so many people all around the world, it just opens up completely different audiences to our game that’s seemingly growing on a daily basis anyway. It can only be a real positive thing for the game.” Ponting added
Notably, making inroads in the US is a key objective for the ICC, who have co-hosted the prestigious T20 World Cup 2024 in a bid to increase the game’s presence in the country. However, the world cricket governing body will have its work cut out for it as it had been criticised for hosting matches on substandard pitches in the US.
Ponting also hinted at infrastructure being a potentially going to be a factor for conducting Olympics 2028, stating, “Facilities and infrastructure and those things are going to be key and how many teams they actually decide on. I think it’s only six or seven teams that they’re talking about. ”