With cricket set to make its Olympic return in Los Angeles, batting legend Rahul Dravid has revealed that conversations about representing the country at the Olympics have already begun in the Indian dressing room. Cricket was last featured as an Olympic sport at the 1900 Summer Games. Last year, the International Olympic Committee announced that cricket would be included in the Los Angeles Games in 2028.
During a ‘Cricket at the Olympics: Dawn of a New Era’ event at the India House in Paris, celebrating cricket’s inclusion in the LA Games, Dravid expressed that cricketers would be highly motivated to win gold for their country.
“I’ve already heard a few conversations in the dressing room. People are talking about the 2026 T20 World Cup, there is an ODI World Cup in 2027, and you hear people saying there is the Olympics in 2028,” Rahul Dravid said.
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“People are going to want to win that gold medal, stand on the podium, and be a part of the Games Village, a great sporting event, and interact with so many athletes. As you get closer, I have no doubt that teams will be preparing and checking out facilities. They will take this seriously, and players will fight tooth and nail to be out there,” he added.
Rahul Dravid expressed his hope that India would clinch both the men’s and women’s gold medals at the LA Games.
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“Have already heard a few conversations in the dressing room…,” he says@sanjaysuri88 | #Cricket #Olympics2028 #LAOlympics #SummerOlympics pic.twitter.com/aX0IvQP3nS
— News18 (@CNNnews18) July 29, 2024
“The dream for me is to have a fantastic cricket tournament, hopefully, Indian men and women winning the gold which would be nice. But more than that, I wish for everyone here… So many Indian fans would be able to come to LA and support cricket, and show the rest of the world how big and great a sport cricket is,” he said.
Rahul Dravid, who recently guided India to a T20 World Cup triumph before stepping down as head coach, is now looking forward to being part of the LA Games in some capacity.
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“Unfortunately, I won’t be able to play, but I will make every effort to be in LA in some capacity or another. If not anything else, I will try to get a media job,” he quipped. “You grow up watching the Olympics, seeing Carl Lewis winning the gold medal, watching the great athletes perform. You always dream of being part of such a global event, and now cricket has that chance,” Dravid concluded.
