Cricket at LA 2028: Only 6 countries can participate in Olympics, Pakistan may miss out

Only six countries will have the chance to compete for Olympic gold in cricket at the 2028 LA Olympics.
Organizers have confirmed that the LA tournament will be a T20 competition, featuring six teams in both the men’s and women’s events.

With 90 athlete quotas allocated per gender, each team will field a 15-player squad. Only the top six teams will qualify for these showcase events.
Given that the USA may receive automatic qualification as hosts, among the ICC's 94 associate members and 12 full members, only five remaining spots are available for men's cricket teams at LA 2028.
The Indian men's cricket team, led by Suryakumar Yadav and the current defending T20 champions, holds the number one position in the ICC Men's T20I rankings. Harmanpreet Kaur's women's cricket team is ranked third, behind Australia and England.
Pakistan's cricket teams might miss out on LA 2028, considering their current rankings. They are seventh in the men's team rankings and eighth in the women's.
Cricket is one of five new sports to be featured at the upcoming Olympics. The IOC approved cricket’s inclusion for LA28 two years ago, along with baseball/softball, flag football, lacrosse (sixes), and squash.
The inclusion of cricket in the LA 2028 Games program was largely motivated by the desire to cater to South Asian audiences and enable the International Olympic Committee to secure larger broadcast deals, particularly in the subcontinent. This move would be further strengthened if broadcast timings align, potentially through a shift to New York.
While venues are yet to be finalized, multiple reports suggest that, in an effort to maximize Indian viewership, the 2028 LA Olympics may see the cricket event relocated to New York, approximately a six-hour flight away.
The LA 2028 organizers are prioritizing Indian viewership for cricket's Olympic debut. With India 9.5 hours ahead of New York and 12.5 hours ahead of Los Angeles, Casey Wasserman, LA 2028 chairman, confirmed that plans will be tailored to suit Indian time zones. This decision follows New York's recent hosting of the 2024 T20 World Cup in a temporary Nassau County stadium, where weather significantly impacted some matches.
For LA 2028, potential venues include Brooklyn's Marine Park, home to MI New York, or a proposed 10,000-seat stadium. However, the latter's completion before the Games remains uncertain.