GB cricket team inches closer to Los Angeles Olympics

Olympics 2028. (Source – Photo by ETIENNE LAURENT/AFP via Getty Images)

The cricket’s return to the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028 has taken a significant step forward, with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket Scotland working together to establish a Great Britain (GB) team. The team will comprise male and female players from England, Scotland, and potentially Northern Ireland.

A new governing body, GB Cricket, is being formed to oversee the effort. It will feature a board made up of both executive and non-executive members from the ECB and Cricket Scotland. The men’s team would effectively be defending the Olympic title last won by Great Britain in Paris in 1900, the only previous occasion cricket featured in the Games.

The representation from Northern Ireland will be ensured by a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) established with Cricket Ireland. Although Cricket Ireland represents both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, it is unlikely that players from the Republic would seek qualification for Team GB. But, Northern Irish players such as Ireland’s white-ball captain Paul Stirling, along with Mark Adair, Andy McBrine, and women’s wicketkeeper Amy Hunter may be eligible to compete.

The official formation of GB Cricket is expected in the coming months. After the establishment, it will seek recognition from both the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the British Olympic Association (BOA) and with the aim of becoming a full member of the National Olympic Committee (NOC).

The qualification process for what is expected to be a six-team tournament has yet to be finalised. But, it has already been confirmed that England’s men’s and women’s teams will qualify automatically, with players from Scotland and Northern Ireland to be considered thereafter.

England’s new white-ball captain Harry Brook is set to begin his tenure with the first ODI against the West Indies at Edgbaston on Thursday. He admitted that playing in the Olympics will be exciting and will be happy to get a gold medal.

“That would be pretty cool to be able to play in the Olympics and get an Olympic gold medal. But it’s so far away, it’s miles away yet. I haven’t even thought about that yet,” Brook was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

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