Organizers of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games have announced that matches in the cricket tournament will kick off at 9:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time. This decision represents the most significant step yet towards realizing the first Olympic cricket event. It’s set to begin on July 12th, 2028, only two days before the Games’ official opening ceremony.
The matches will be broadcast at different times for international audiences, with viewing times of 9:30 PM and 7:00 AM India Standard Time, as well as 5:00 PM and 2:30 AM British Summer Time. We’ll be using a six-team T20 format, with both men’s and women’s teams participating in what promises to be an exciting, action-packed competition!
All cricket matches will take place at a specially built venue on the Fairgrounds in Pomona, California. This sprawling facility was built to set the stage for the Olympic competition. It will be a permanent venue for cricket for franchise owners like the Knight Riders, who play in both the Indian Premier League and Major League Cricket.
During the tournament, two games will be played each day at the Pomona venue, scheduled for 9:00 AM and 6:30 PM PDT. The six teams will separate into two three-team groups to start the tournament. Each team will play each other once in a round robin format. Each team will play two games against teams from the opposite group. The others, ranked the same in their own group, won’t face each other. The overall final rankings will be determined by the results from these opening round matches.
Only the top two teams from the double-elimination tournament will move on. In the final match against China, both teams will be competing for gold and silver medals. At the same time, those finishing in third and fourth will compete in a third-place playoff to decide who gets bronze. The medal matches are currently scheduled for July 20 and July 29.
The men’s and women’s tournaments will be among the first events planned in this new framework. This modification lets each event stay in the spotlight and maximize viewership with its own focus. As hosts of the Games, the USA will qualify for the tournament. This brings in important local interest and excitement to the event.
Kit McConnell, representative from the International Cricket Council (ICC) asserted the important value of the playing conditions for cricket. We know just how important the field of play is. In cricket, the pitch is essential to the game. He continued, “Now that we settled on the venue, we’re able to really start. This helps us to be able to treat all of our planning with a much more tangible way.
McConnell as well voiced his confidence in the quality of competition that the Olympic stage will provide. He explained that the International Cricket Council can be an exemplary model for us. This vision is particularly focused on bringing out the best players and the best teams to shine on the biggest Olympic stage.
Cricket’s addition to the Olympics would be a monumental victory for the sport. Its adoption keeps growing all over the world. It creates an opportunity for cricket to flaunt both its competitive spirit in the preeminent global stage and its welcoming, vibrant nature to a younger, diverse audience.
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