GB cricket nears ratification ahead of LA 2028 Olympics return

LONDON(UK): A combined Great Britain (GB) cricket team, featuring men’s and women’s players from England, Scotland, and potentially Northern Ireland is a step closer to official recognition by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket Scotland, as preparations continue for cricket’s return to the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028, as per ESPNcricinfo.

A new governing body, GB Cricket, is in the process of being established. It would oversee the men’s team’s symbolic title defence, the last time cricket featured at the Olympics was in Paris in 1900, when a GB team won gold.

The organization will be governed by a board consisting of executive and non-executive members from both the ECB and Cricket Scotland. A memorandum of understanding (MOU) will also be signed with Cricket Ireland, ensuring players from Northern Ireland are eligible for Olympic selection.

Cricket Ireland represents both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, it is unlikely that most of its players would seek to represent GB.

However, a number of Northern Ireland based players such as white-ball captain Paul Stirling, Mark Adair, Andy McBrine, and women’s wicketkeeper Amy Hunter, could qualify for GB selection.

GB Cricket is expected to be formally established in the coming months. Once constituted, it will require recognition from both the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the British Olympic Association (BOA) to be accepted as a full member of the National Olympic Committee (NOC).

According to an ECB spokesperson, a preliminary agreement with the ICC is already in place.

While the qualification format for the likely six-team Olympic tournament has not been finalized, it has been agreed that the England men’s and women’s teams will serve as the primary route to Olympic qualification for Team GB. Players from Scotland and Northern Ireland would then be available for final squad selection.

This development adds another dimension to the responsibilities of England’s new white-ball captain, Harry Brook, who is set to begin his tenure with the first ODI against the West Indies at Edgbaston on Thursday.

“That would be pretty cool to be able to play in the Olympics and get an Olympic gold medal,” Brook said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.

“But it’s so far away, it’s miles away yet. I haven’t even thought about that yet,” he added. (ANI)