Cricket likely to be included in Olympics in near future
Chances are high that cricket will be included in Olympics sooner rather than later because the President of International Olympic Committee (IOC) Jacques Rogge seems to be a huge fan of the sport.
Cricket appeared previously in the Olympics 1900 held in Paris. Since then the ‘gentlemen’s game’ has been ignored because of its long format, which is not suited for the Olympics.
IOC President said that he is hopeful that the International Cricket Council will file an application this year in order to have cricket in the most prestigious event of the world of sports. He added that cricket is amongst the most popular sports of the
world and has a huge television viewership.
Rogge said, “The International Cricket Council will decide at the end of June whether they will make an application. The incoming president might be interested. We would welcome an application. It's an important, popular sport and very powerful on television.”
Before 1971, international cricket was limited to only Test cricket which does not attract a big amount of crowd because of the length of time an average Test match takes. However, the introduction of limited overs cricket in the previous century immensely
increased the popularity of the game.
If cricket is included in Olympics, then it has to be T20 cricket because it is not as much time consuming and can be adjusted in the schedule of the Olympic Games.
Rogge revealed that he is a great cricket lover himself and a fan of some of the cricket legends. He said that cricket has a rich culture and tradition which is very much different from other sports and it does test the nerves and skills of a cricketer apart
from the physical fitness.
"I love the game. I have watched http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Shane-Keith-Warne-c89672, Ian Botham. It's tactically very interesting, a game of patience, a game of great skills and the only sport where, after five days, you can have a draw. It's a sport with a
great tradition where mostly you have a respect of the ethics. In the Olympics, it will not be Test cricket, of course," he said.
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