Twenty20 in 2020?
This could be the ultimate destiny - Twenty20 cricket in the 2020 Olympics:
Per the article, cricket has been given "recognition status" by the IOC, but it competes with lots of other sports for inclusion in the games.
Had Twenty20 been a recognized success several years earlier, I think the London 2012 committee would have worked to include it in their Olympic bid (although demonstration sports are no longer encouraged by the IOC). I am quite surprised though that India has not included cricket in the 2010 Commonwealth Games, especially since Malaysia included in the 1998 Commonwealth games.
For those who may not know, cricket has made an appearance in the Olympics once - back in the 1900 Olympics in Paris. Well, it was really just one match between British and French club sides. The entire 1900 Olympics were a bit weird though - they lasted several months, were combined with the Paris Expo, and many players (across all sports) had no idea that they were participating in the Olympics.
For more on cricket's brief appearance in Olympics, click here and here.
Getting back on topic, I think cricket would be great for the Olympics, Commonwealth, and even Asian Games. If kabaddi can be a sport at the Asian Games since 1990, I'm sure cricket can stake a claim too. Of course, the logistics would be a tad more complicated than kabaddi, but I'm sure something can be figured out!
Cricket at any organized games would become another major trophy for teams to vie for, and there will be interest from non-traditional spectators as well (if people can watch synchronized swimming without shooting themselves, they'll watch anything!). Let's see how strong the Twenty20 lobby becomes, and what they can do to convince Jacques Rogge and his crew that Twenty20 cricket needs to become an integral part of the Olympics. I foresee it happening.
Alright...all together now..."Twenty20 for 2020!"
Steve Waugh, who led Australia to a Commonwealth Games silver medal, is part of a growing group of current and former players who have supported Adam Gilchrist's push for Twenty20 to be part of the 2020 Olympics. Gilchrist raised the idea on Monday and since then a series of big names, including Sourav Ganguly and Stephen Fleming, have climbed on board. [LINK]
Per the article, cricket has been given "recognition status" by the IOC, but it competes with lots of other sports for inclusion in the games.
Had Twenty20 been a recognized success several years earlier, I think the London 2012 committee would have worked to include it in their Olympic bid (although demonstration sports are no longer encouraged by the IOC). I am quite surprised though that India has not included cricket in the 2010 Commonwealth Games, especially since Malaysia included in the 1998 Commonwealth games.
For those who may not know, cricket has made an appearance in the Olympics once - back in the 1900 Olympics in Paris. Well, it was really just one match between British and French club sides. The entire 1900 Olympics were a bit weird though - they lasted several months, were combined with the Paris Expo, and many players (across all sports) had no idea that they were participating in the Olympics.
For more on cricket's brief appearance in Olympics, click here and here.
Getting back on topic, I think cricket would be great for the Olympics, Commonwealth, and even Asian Games. If kabaddi can be a sport at the Asian Games since 1990, I'm sure cricket can stake a claim too. Of course, the logistics would be a tad more complicated than kabaddi, but I'm sure something can be figured out!
Cricket at any organized games would become another major trophy for teams to vie for, and there will be interest from non-traditional spectators as well (if people can watch synchronized swimming without shooting themselves, they'll watch anything!). Let's see how strong the Twenty20 lobby becomes, and what they can do to convince Jacques Rogge and his crew that Twenty20 cricket needs to become an integral part of the Olympics. I foresee it happening.
Alright...all together now..."Twenty20 for 2020!"
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