Pakistan likely to miss out on cricket at LA Olympics 2028

Pakistan's Faheem Ashraf against Bangladesh, 2nd T20I, Mirpur, Bangladesh, July 22, 2025. — AFP

Six-team limit narrows field for 2028 Games.

IOC backs global representation in Olympic cricket.

ICC to decide on final Olympic cricket berth.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has finalised the qualification process for cricket at the 2028 Olympics, with reports from British media outlet The Guardian indicating that Pakistan is unlikely to qualify for the men’s event.

Following discussions at its annual general meeting in Singapore, the ICC has approved a regional qualification format to decide the participating teams.

The men’s tournament at the Los Angeles Games will include six teams, with one automatic slot reserved for the host nation, the United States.

Under the proposed model, the highest-ranked team from each continent will qualify, ensuring representation from all regions.

This means India is expected to claim Asia’s spot, while Australia (Oceania), South Africa (Africa) and Great Britain (Europe) will also qualify automatically. With these allocations, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and New Zealand will miss out on direct qualification.

One of the Caribbean nations could replace USA if their governance issues are not resolved after the ICC called on USA Cricket’s Board to resign this month.

Pakistan and New Zealand are unhappy with the ICC’s decision, but while it has yet to be ratified by the board it is unlikely to be reversed.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) also pushed for the regional qualification system to ensure global representation and promote cricket’s international appeal.

This format, however, leaves just one spot open after India, Australia, South Africa, Great Britain and the USA have confirmed their places.

The ICC will decide how the sixth and final berth will be awarded. There is speculation that it could go to a representative team from the Caribbean Islands, similar to the arrangement during the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, where Barbados represented the region.

The men’s and women’s cricket tournaments at LA 2028 will be played in the T20 format.

The ICC has already confirmed that both competitions will run from July 12 to July 29, 2028, with the women’s medal match scheduled for July 20 and the men’s final on July 29.

Cricket will make its return to the Olympic stage after 128 years. The sport’s only previous appearance was at the 1900 Paris Games, where Great Britain defeated France in a one-off match to claim gold.

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