Cricket returns to the Olympics after a 128-year absence in the Los Angeles edition in 2028. With three years still to go for the LA28 Olympics, the biggest question remains: how do the teams qualify for the six-team T20 event? ICC has so far maintained silence on the matter, with various complexities involved in cricket. At the ICC AGM between July 13 and 17 in Singapore, the sport’s governing body will take a call. However, there is a strong notion of having a qualifying tournament for the LA28 Olympics cricket.
Although T20I team rankings and T20 World Cup 2028 standings remain two options, the ICC is considering holding a qualification tournament to determine teams for the grand event, as per a Forbes report. LA28 Olympics cricket will be played from July 12-29, 2028, in Pomona, near Los Angeles.
LA28 Olympics cricket qualification
While ICC T20I team rankings would have made it easier to settle the qualification debate, some in the ICC have proposed a qualification tournament. The tournament would include some top-performing associate nations. The qualification based on T20I rankings would have been cost-efficient. More importantly, ICC would not have needed to redraw the 2023-27 Men’s Future Tours Program (FTP).
A qualification tournament could be difficult, considering T20 leagues take up almost half of the cricket calendar. IPL which gets a dedicated window in ICC FTP for two months, won’t be moved to a different window. The Test summer in England and in Australia will also stay put. That makes a standalone qualification tournament almost impossible. However, the T20 World Cup 2028 could become an Olympics qualifying event as the World Championships in athletics and other sports do. The semifinalists get an automatic qualification apart from the host nation and the best-ranked team.
The USA problem
However, the ICC will face a USA problem with the LA28 Olympics cricket qualification. The USA is the host of the 2028 Olympics. As the host nation is guaranteed a spot in any sporting event, ICC will have to take a call on that. Despite their success in the T20 World Cup 2024, the USA is not among the favourite teams. In a six-team tournament, where big teams like Pakistan, New Zealand, and South Africa could miss out, granting an automatic spot to the USA could be difficult.
At the AGM, ICC will take a call on whether the USA could get an automatic spot. However, many are in favour of granting the USA at least one automatic spot. If they fail to get a spot in the men’s event, the USA could earn an automatic spot in the women’s event.
However, the ICC already put the USA Cricket on notice at the last AGM on governing issues. If the ICC suspends USA Cricket again for non-compliance, they could find it difficult to earn an automatic qualification spot.
