2028 Olympics: 'Cricket in Los Angeles will expand the game'

Mohammed (left) and Yash play together for Slough Cricket Club

Howzat for good news? Cricket is going to be at the Olympics.

It was voted in by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) during their meeting in Mumbai and will make its debut at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.

Organisers have proposed a six-team event, but no firm decision has been made on the final number or how they will qualify.

IOC president Thomas Bach said the sports selected will make the LA Games "unique" and plenty of big names from the cricket world have rushed to praise the decision.

But it's not just a potential win for cricket - there's a hope the sport's inclusion will help the Olympics increase its estimated 3 billion viewers.

Yash, who plays for Slough Cricket Club, lived in India until he was 18 and says people don't really watch the Olympics in south Asia.

"People only know Usain Bolt and that's it," the 22-year-old tells BBC Asian Network.

"It's only the wealthier families who really watch it, not the people who live in villages. But now cricket is in, then 100% people are going to start watching it.

"Nearly half the population of this world plays cricket, it's the second most popular sport in the world after football.

"India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka - it's a religion in that part of the world."

Ben Stokes and Liam Livingstone won the T20 World Cup with England, could a gold medal be next?

A T20 franchise league called Major League Cricket launched in the United States this year, and the T20 World cup will also be in the country next year.

So for Yash's teammate Mohammed, cricket becoming more popular in the US can only be a good thing.

The 25-year-old is looking to move there for his cricket career and has even more motivation now it's going to be part of the LA Games.

"The ICC have a three-year qualification rule. So I could decide I want to play for the US and I'd have to do three years there," he says.

"A lot of young players have decided 'while cricket isn't working out for me in this country, I can potentially go and play elsewhere'.

"Now with Major League Cricket, and the potential to play in an Olympics as well if things go well - I think it's a big opportunity for people looking to move to the US."

• A quick guide to the 2023 Cricket World Cup

• Could America be the future of cricket?

• IOC approves cricket's inclusion for 2028 LA Games

Some have pointed out that the global cricket schedule is already jam-packed, with new T20 competitions popping up around the world.

But former West Indies captain Carlos Brathwaite says the Olympics has to take priority, as it would be huge for the greater good of the game.

"To be able to expand to a bigger World Cup almost, that would do more good for the game than missing out on the Olympics just so we can play an extra round of County Championship or [T20] Blast," he says.

"The Olympics brings something to the game that no local or regional tournament can bring."

Freya Kemp (right) was presented with her debut England cap by Danni Wyatt (left) in September last year

It's expected there will be both a T20 men's and women's tournament at the Olympics, which is music to the ears of England Women's cricketer Freya Kemp.

"It's obviously one of the world's biggest sporting stages so that would really help accelerate the rapid growth of the women's cricket game that's already happening," the 18-year-old says.

"It can take cricket to new parts of the world and let people who maybe haven't seen cricket or played develop a new love for the sport."

Freya's teammate Danni Wyatt is one of England Women's most capped players and was part of the squad that took part in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham last summer.

"It was a dream come true, chatting to athletes from different sports around the world was amazing," she says.

"The opening ceremony was epic too. You'd never get anything like that if we didn't get that opportunity to play in the Commonwealth Games and now to play in the Olympics. That's everyone's dream."

Danni, 32, says one of the things she enjoyed the most was playing in front of a different crowd to usual.

"We had a lot of non-cricket fans there, I think they really got into it because I remember fielding on the boundary and everyone was shouting 'England, England'," she says.

"It was really cool to be part of."

So would the pair rather win the World Cup or Olympic gold?

"I think Cricket World Cup, but it might turn into cricket in the Olympics," Freya says.

Danni adds: "Oh gosh, that is hard. I've already won a World Cup so let's go something different and go Olympic gold medal."

Listen to Ankur Desai's show on BBC Asian Network live from 15:00-18:00 Monday to Thursday - or listen back here.