Cricket in Commonwealth Games?

[Craig]

Clearly I'm behind the times as India (and I think Pakistan and Sri Lanka did as well) withdrew. Bangladesh should cake walk this,

 

[juro]

On a related note, I hear that Canada and Bermuda are pushing for T20 to be included in the Pan America Games. Funny how it is included in the Asian Games, the Pacific Games, and possibly others, but not the Commonwealth Games...

 

[Furball]

Shame it isn't. There's some lovely cricket grounds in Glasgow.

 

[Pothas]

Commonwealth games totally irrelevant as far as I am concerned and hate sports such as football and tennis being in the Olympics so a definite no.

 

[Prince EWS]

Commonwealth games totally irrelevant as far as I am concerned and hate sports such as football and tennis being in the Olympics so a definite no.

Yeah; I've always felt that all sports in the Olympics should have Olympic glory as their pinnacle; not just exist at the games to showcase the sport and bring people to the 'real' stuff.

 

[juro]

I find this logic a bit strange. Pretty much any sport has its own world championship of some sort. Soccer has its world cup, as does hockey. Athletics and swimming have world championships, as does gymnastics, archery, boxing, weight lifting and wrestling. It is just that 99% of the population only care about these other sports for 2 weeks every 4 years.

Are you suggesting that soccer should be excluded from the olympics, basically because the sport is popular enough to stand on its own feet? That only unpopular sports should compete at they olympics??

 

[Howe_zat]

I would say exactly that, yes. That way I can continue not giving a **** about the Olympics.

 

[Pothas]

Yeah, Im not a huge Olympics fan but gettin really into a sport that you normally couldn't care less about is what makes It fun.

 

[Howe_zat]

By all means, there's a wide difference between enjoying watching a sport and giving a **** about it.

 

[Prince EWS]

I find this logic a bit strange. Pretty much any sport has its own world championship of some sort. Soccer has its world cup, as does hockey. Athletics and swimming have world championships, as does gymnastics, archery, boxing, weight lifting and wrestling. It is just that 99% of the population only care about these other sports for 2 weeks every 4 years.

Are you suggesting that soccer should be excluded from the olympics, basically because the sport is popular enough to stand on its own feet? That only unpopular sports should compete at they olympics??

Yep, absolutely.

 

[Crazy Sam]

I don't like sports like tennis and soccer being in the Olympics at all, but it is likely they are there as they can potentially attract stronger teams and players from countries that are unlikely to be strong in many other events, thus increasing global TV audiences and therefore money for the IOC and broadcasters.

I don't see why a similar role couldn't be played with cricket in the Commonwealth Games. The CWG are a bit of a joke anyway. My only concern would be the number of venues required - would one be enough for a T20 competition? I suppose you could have a day game and a night game on the same pitch.

 

[Furball]

I don't like sports like tennis and soccer being in the Olympics at all, but it is likely they are there as they can potentially attract stronger teams and players from countries that are unlikely to be strong in many other events, thus increasing global TV audiences and therefore money for the IOC and broadcasters.

I don't see why a similar role couldn't be played with cricket in the Commonwealth Games. The CWG are a bit of a joke anyway. My only concern would be the number of venues required - would one be enough for a T20 competition? I suppose you could have a day game and a night game on the same pitch.

Off the top of my head I can instantly think of 3 venues in Glasgow.

 

[Jono]

Yeah; I've always felt that all sports in the Olympics should have Olympic glory as their pinnacle; not just exist at the games to showcase the sport and bring people to the 'real' stuff.

Winning the Gold in tennis isn't the pinnacle yet Federer desperately wanted a gold medal (and he only won it in the Doubles, not singles) and has mentioned plenty of times how important it is to him. Reckon he'd trade a Grand Slam for a gold in the singles (though that's just me speculating of course).

It's tricky.

 

[Crazy Sam]

When you win 20 grand slams I think you can afford to trade one for an Olympic gold.

 

[Jono]

He wouldn't trade his French or any Wimbledon though I reckon.

 

[Furball]

Winning the Gold in tennis isn't the pinnacle yet Federer desperately wanted a gold medal (and he only won it in the Doubles, not singles) and has mentioned plenty of times how important it is to him. Reckon he'd trade a Grand Slam for a gold in the singles (though that's just me speculating of course).

It's tricky.

I think for a sport like tennis an Olympic gold medal is something cool to have, as the opportunity to win one only comes round every 4 years.

 

[morgieb]

I think it'll look like what soccer does in the Olympics - a farce where only young guys play.

 

[benchmark00]

I think it'll look like what soccer does in the Olympics - a farce where only young guys play.

Dude, you do know only young guys are allowed to play soccer in the Olympics..?

 

[juro]

International Cricket Council - News

ICC considers T20 for Olympics
AFP
Sat, Jan 14, 2012 8:18 PM


The strong emergence of the Twenty20 format has the ICC considering a bid to have cricket return to the Olympics after more than a century, ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said on Saturday.

Cricket has been played only once at the Olympics, in 1900, although it was not officially recognised as an Olympic sport until 12 years later.

The International Cricket Council (ICC), the sport's world governing body, was officially recognised as a federation by the International Olympic Committee in 2010, meaning the ICC can bid to join the 2020 Games.

Speaking on radio at the third Test between Australia and India in Perth, Lorgat said Twenty20 was the first international cricket format suitable for the Olympics.

"We have never had a format that would lend itself to playing in the Olympics until Twenty20 came to the fore," he said. "We are starting to have a look at that."

"In the strategic plan the board approved in 2011, we will evaluate properly what the benefits are for Olympic participation. There are pros and cons to that decision."

"We would need to see what the implications would be on the Cricket World Cup."

Lorgat said the biggest hurdle facing cricket's return to the Olympics was the already packed playing schedule.

"If we were to introduce cricket into the Olympics, that is another extended period of time taken out of the calendar," he said.

Lorgat added that the ICC was keen to limit the amount of Twenty20 cricket played at international level.

Two weeks every 4 years is an extended period of time???