Commonwealth Games 2026: Victoria bats for T20 cricket
Shooting and wrestling were not included in the initial list of 16 sports for the multi-sport event so far. The list will be updated later in the year.
In a major boost for cricket, the T20 format of the game found its place in the initial list of sports released for the 2026 Commonwealth Games to be held in the state of Victoria, Australia.
In what will be the first regional Commonwealth Games, the cricket matches will be played across four Victorian cities - Geelong, Bendigo, Ballarat and Gippsland.
The opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games 2026 will be held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Melbourne hosted the CWG in 2006.
Cricket has been part of the quadrennial event once, back in 1998 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The sport will also be played at the upcoming Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham with eight sides, including India, competing in women’s T20 Internationals.
However, It is not clear if cricket will be separate events for men and women in 2026.
Overall, 16 sports were included in the initial list for Commonwealth Games 2026.
Athletics, badminton, boxing, beach volleyball, cycling, gymnastics, hockey, lawn bowls, netball, rugby sevens, squash, table tennis, triathlon, weightlifting, swimming and diving are the other 15 sports listed.
Shooting and wrestling did not make the cut in the initial list. However, the list of sports for the 2026 Commonwealth Games will be updated later in the year.
Shooting has been excluded from the Commonwealth Games 2022 as well.
India have won 503 medals in all at the Commonwealth Games so far, of which 135 have been in shooting and 102 in wrestling. The two sports account for nearly half of India’s medal tally at the CWG.