The Chinese connection

For a country that has won accolades in different sports, China have never really familiarized themselves with cricket. Fred Dove, writing for BBC, suggests a sure-shot method of ensuring China take the game more seriously.

What would change everything would be cricket regaining the Olympic status it had more than 100 years ago. As the official in charge of cricket at the Sports Ministry in Beijing told me, if Olympic medals were up for grabs, the ministry would swing into action. Across China, boys and girls would be identified as potential Olympic cricketers, brought together and trained by top international coaches. China's national teams would rise up the world rankings. Only, though, in the short form of the game. T20 cricket is probably the only format that could be played at the Olympics. As for China becoming a Test match-playing nation, let's just say that when I asked the man at the sports ministry whether he had ever sat through a five-day Test match, his response said it all: "Oh no, that would be torture."