Image for representation purpose only.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

Five sports, including cricket and squash, were included in the 2028 Los Angeles Games on Monday after gaining the approval of the International Olympic Committee.

Cricket makes its return to the Olympics after more than 100 years after the sport was approved for inclusion at the 2028 Los Angeles Games by the International Olympic Committee’s executive board.

IOC president Thomas Bach, speaking after the second day of an executive board meeting in Mumbai on October 13, said officials had accepted a proposal by LA organisers for Twenty20 cricket to be included as one of five new sports together with baseball/softball, flag football (non-contact American football), squash and lacrosse.

But the final choice of which sports are on the 2028 programme was voted today at the IOC session in Mumbai. Each host city, under IOC rules, can request the inclusion of several sports for their edition of the Games.

The LA Games proposal is for a six-team Twenty20 cricket tournament for men and women. T20 is a short format of the game.

The IOC hopes cricket’s inclusion will activate and engage a large, new Olympic audience, especially among Asian fans of the sport.

Cricket has been played in the Olympics only once before, in Paris in 1900, when England defeated France.

(With inputs from Reuters, PTI)

Rashid Khan of Afghanistan celebrates the wicket of Mark Wood of England to win by 69 runs during the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup India 2023 between England and Afghanistan at Arun Jaitley Stadium on October 15, 2023 in Delhi, India.
| Photo Credit: Gareth Copley

Star Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan on Sunday hoped their stunning 69-run win over England in the World Cup will put a smile on the faces of his countrymen and heal their pain following a series of devastating earthquakes.

Afghanistan on Sunday created one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history, shocking defending champions England here.

“This is a big win for us. This kind of performance gives us the belief that we can beat any side on any day. It will give us the energy for the rest of the World Cup,” Rashid Khan told the broadcasters after Afghanistan bowled England out for 215 after posting 284 all out.

“Cricket is something that brings joy to the people back home. Winning the game against England is big for us. Recently, we had an earthquake back home. Over 3,000 people lost their lives, many houses were destroyed, so this win will put a little bit of smile on their faces and maybe, they can little bit forget those days.”

Afghanistan have been affected by strong earthquakes and aftershocks, which killed thousands of people and flattened many villages. In fact, on Sunday, a powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck western Afghanistan.

Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who was adjudged the Player of the Match for his all-round show, also dedicated his award to his countrymen back home.

“I want to dedicate this award to the people back home, who have been affected by the earthquake. This is something we could do as a team and I could do myself as a player,” he said after returning bowling figures of 3 for 51 and scoring a 16-ball 28.

“It is a very proud moment to be here at the World Cup and beating the champions. Great achievement for the whole team and this is the kind of opportunity we have been working hard for. It was a wonderful performances by the bowlers and the batters.”

Rashid, who snapped three for 37, said they had set up small goals and just wanted to give their heart and soul in their performance without thinking about the result.

“I made it clear to everyone in the dressing room. Whatever happens in the tournament, we just have to fight till the end. We made small goals for ourselves. You just have to be happy that you gave your 100% while going back to the hotel.” Talking about Mujeeb, Rashid said, “Mujeeb has been contributing consistently for us. We have been bowling together in the nets. We have been batting together in the nets.

“We discuss what’s the best ball to bowl on the wicket. Sharing information helps us. I’m lucky to have him around. Also, we have Nabi and great to have him who has plenty of experience.

“It’s a special occasion for Nabi. 150th game for him. Also, 100th game for Rahmat Shah. We said that we would celebrate after the win. This will be a memorable win for him.

“We lost to England in the 2016 T20 World Cup here. We had a discussion about it. We restricted them to 140 but had a collapse. We learnt from the mistakes and really happy to win tonight,” he added.

Mujeeb had started the proceedings in their defence of 284 as he shared the new ball with Fazalhaq Farooqi.

“As a spinner, it is pretty hard to bowl in the powerplay. But I have been working in the nets. There is not much room for error to bowl wide so I have tried to bowl wicket-to-wicket,” he said.

“We knew that dew will play some part and that is why I wanted to bowl in the powerplay. The ball was holding a little bit as well. Even if there was dew, I was mentally prepared. Not to give much room and bowl in the right areas.”

Asked about his batting, Mujeeb, who slammed three fours and a six during his cameo, said, “It is all about the management. They have been giving me confidence. I want to contribute as a lower-order batter as well, and those 25-30 runs help the team as well. I want to continue doing that.”

England skipper Jos Buttler said it will take a lot of effort from his team to overcome the setback.

“Disappointed with the result. The team will need to show a lot of resilience to get over this and make a successful comeback,” said Buttler.

“Disappointing to win the toss and concede that many, me missing that first ball down the leg side set the tone. Credit to Afghanistan, they outplayed us today.”

He conceded that the defending champions erred in executing their strategy.

“It came down to execution, we weren’t quite at the level we’d like to be with both bat and ball. You got to let these defeats hurt, there’s no point in getting over things too quickly, we need to reflect.

“There’s a lot of character in this group, we need to show a lot of resilience and come back stronger,” added Buttler.

Central team of officials to visit Nipah-hit areas

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Joe Biden’s son Hunter indicted on gun charges

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Asia Cup 2023, SL vs PAK | Sri Lanka’s Mendis and Asalanka script a thrilling win over Pakistan

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Business jet veers off Mumbai airport runway, breaks into two

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Congress mulls Bharat Jodo Yatra 2.0 ahead of Lok Sabha polls

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Jana Sena, TDP to fight 2024 Andhra Pradesh Assembly polls together

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SC dismisses appeal against meat ban in Lakshadweep school mid-day meal menu

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Tourists throng Bharat Mandapam to view special installations days after G-20 Summit

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Over 95% chance of El Nino conditions from January-March 2024: U.S. forecaster

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Veteran actor Govinda may be questioned in connection with Ponzi scheme

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Study shows COVID-19 variant XBB is highly infectious, favours booster dose to protect people

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Suu Kyi party says Myanmar junta depriving her of medical care

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Most Libya flood casualties could have been avoided: U.N.

The United Nations said Thursday that most of the thousands of deaths in Libya’s flood disaster could have been averted if early warning and emergency management systems had functioned properly. With better functioning coordination in the crisis-wracked country, the human toll could have been far smaller, the UN’s World Meteorological Organization said. It warned that other conflict-hit countries faced similar, dangerous deficiencies to their early warning systems. If the system in Libya ad worked properly, “the emergency management forces would have been able to carry out the evacuation of the people, and we could have avoided most of the human casualties,” WMO chief Petteri Taalas told reporters in Geneva.

IMF delegates participate in a news conference on the IMF release of the World Economic Outlook Update, at IMF headquarters in Washington, DC, on July 25, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AFP

Names of 5 crore MGNREGS workers deleted in 2022-23, Minister informs Lok Sabha

Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha, on July 25 informed that names of over five crore workers have been deleted under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in the financial year 2022-23. There has been a hike of 247% in deletions during 2022-23 as compared to 2021-22.

IMF projects Indian economy to grow at 6.1% in 2023

The IMF on July 25 projected a growth rate of 6.1% for India in 2023, which is a 0.2 percentage point upward revision compared with the April projection.

Manipur government partially eases Internet curbs; no access on mobiles

After an 83-day Internet shutdown in Manipur, the State government marginally eased the restrictions on July 25, albeit under strict conditions.

INDIA alliance likely to submit no-confidence motion notice against government in Lok Sabha on Wednesday 

The alliance has already drawn up a draft of the notice and is in the process of getting the necessary 50 signatures of MPs. The group has to submit the notice before 10 am for it to be read out by the speaker in the House on Wednesday.

Gyanvapi mosque management moves Allahabad HC over ASI survey, hearing begins

The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday heard a plea against a district court order directing the Archaeological Survey of India to conduct a survey to determine if the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi was built upon a temple. After hearing arguments in the matter, Chief Justice Pritinker Diwaker posted it for further hearing on Wednesday.

President Murmu reaches Odisha on three-day tour

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NHRC to host national conference on mental healthcare in Vigyan Bhawan, release a new book

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ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 successfully performs fifth orbit-raising manoeuvre

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Taliban bans beauty salons in Afghanistan despite U.N. concern and rare public protest

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Peace-themed torch unveiled for Paris 2024 Olympics

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