MELBOURNE: He would never get a chance to participate in the Olympic Games even if cricket is included but Australian skipper Ricky Ponting is still excited about the prospect as he has started visualising his kids, and those of his teammates, at future Games.
"One of the most important things about the Olympics is that men and women are represented equally. It could just as easily be my lovely, recently arrived daughter Emmy, or any of the kids of the guys I've played with over the years, who may one day represent Australia at the Olympics," Ponting quipped in his column for 'The Australian'.
"The thought of any of our kids playing cricket at the Olympics is pretty amazing," he added.
"I know my time will be well and truly past if it was to happen. It's probably a couple of generations of players away."
Joining the chorus seeking cricket's induction in the Olympic Games, Ponting said carrying the Australian flag at the Games would have been the most cherished moments of his life.
"I would love to be marching into the Olympic Stadium in Beijing during tomorrow night's opening ceremony," he said.
"It would be amazing to be centrestage at the Olympic Games when you have the eyes of the world looking at everything you do," Ponting said.
"Having spent a lifetime in sport, I could not think of anything better or more exciting than cricket being part of the Olympics," he added.
Ponting said adding cricket to the Games would work wonders for the sport's popularity worldover.
"And with the explosion of the short and exciting Twenty20 over the past year, particularly in India, cricket now has the perfect vehicle to be part of the Games," he said.
"Just imagine what having cricket in the Olympics would do for the game globally. And imagine the extra following cricket could bring to the Games.
"I think that's where cricket has it over a lot of different sports. Where we play on the Indian subcontinent there are 1 1/2 billion people, more than 20 per cent of the world's population, and having toured there a lot I can tell you that most of them love cricket.
