Ellyse Perry eyes Olympic gold as cricket returns to 2028 Games

Australian all-rounder Ellyse Perry is thrilled about cricket's return to the Olympics at the 2028 Los Angeles Games and is eager to be part of it.

Cricket will make its Olympic comeback for the first time since 1900, and Perry is optimistic that she will still be in top form and selected to represent Australia.

Perry, who will be 37 by the time the Los Angeles Olympics arrive in 2028, is enthusiastic about the possibility of participating.

“I don’t think I’m the kind of person that wants to pin a date on a retirement. I’ve never looked at it like that,” Perry told BBC Sport.

“If I’m still there and available and good enough, I’d like to be there.”

Perry boasts an impressive cricket career, including six ICC Women's T20 World Cups, two ICC Women's Cricket World Cups, and a gold medal from the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Manchester.

Perry hopes to add an Olympic gold medal to her already stellar resume if she earns a spot on the Australian team for the Los Angeles Games.

“I haven’t set a target on playing at the Olympics, but if I’m still around and good enough, I’d absolutely love to be there,” she said.

“It’s an awesome thing for the game, and an amazing opportunity to continue to grow it.”

Currently, Perry is in England preparing for this year’s T20 World Cup, with a stint in T20 franchise cricket for Birmingham Phoenix ahead of the tournament in Bangladesh starting in October.

“England have been in tremendous form and are playing some great cricket,” Perry said.

“Really excitingly there are a great number of younger players coming through on the domestic scene here.

“I don’t think there’s ever been a huge gap between England and Australia. The Australian team have had the knack of winning the big moments. All sides are playing really consistently now and have a really good handle of the way they want to play.”