First cricket match in new Los Angeles stadium creates Olympic buzz

POMONA, Calif. (AP) — The Los Angeles Knight Riders played their first home game under their lights on Wednesday brand new cricket ground in Southern California, a milestone as excitement builds for the 2028 Olympics.

Cricket, the the second most watched sport in the worldwill be included in the Olympic Games after a gap of 126 years. With a global following of more than 2.5 billion, the Olympics are expected to draw international attention to the Knight Riders Cricket Ground in Pomona, about 30 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Major League Cricketwhich is currently running a season with six teams, hopes to build momentum by giving sports fans in major markets a taste of the excitement that cricket can generate.

About 2,000 spectators – mostly South Asians – filled the stands for the first match between the home team and Washington Freedom on Wednesday evening. They cheered as the first ball of the match was bowled and the crash of the blow reverberated through the stadium — a $21 million, 200,000-square-foot (18,580-square-meter) facility with six lighted towers that went from groundbreaking to completion in less than 70 days.

A mix of LA and cricket culture as an opener

As the crowd waved purple and gold flags – the colors of the Knight Riders, just like the Los Angeles Lakers — a DJ mixed with Bollywood and Bhangra music Bad bunny and evergreen pop hits such as Neil Diamond’s ‘Sweet Caroline’ and Queen’s ‘We Will Rock You’. Lakers legend Metta Sandiford-Artest, formerly known as Ron Artest, bowled the ceremonial first pitch to inaugurate the new stadium.

Venky Mysore, CEO of Mumbai-based Knight Riders Sports, said the cricket conglomerate has not taken any shortcuts in the construction of the eight-field stadium. A pitch, also called a wicket, is a rectangular strip on which most of the action takes place during a cricket match. Most stadiums have only four to six pitches, Mysore said.

The San Gabriel Mountains provide a dramatic backdrop to the stadium, located in the Fairplex event complex. It has temporary seating for about 5,000 for the 2026 season. That will be replaced with permanent seating for more than 20,000 people in the coming year, Mysore said.

A professional level practice facility and a Knight Riders Cricket Academy are also in the works, which he said will help promote and generate interest in the game at the grassroots level.

Currently, there are only three other international-level cricket stadiums operating in the US Texas, Florida and North Carolina. The sport is also played at other multi-purpose venues, such as the Oakland Coliseum.

Fans and players celebrate the future of cricket in the US

Tanush Bhagwat, a 13-year-old fast bowler, traveled from San Diego with his family to watch Wednesday’s match. He plays for two local leagues and hopes to one day make it to the Major League and play for Team USA.

“The ground looks beautiful,” he said. “But the Olympic Games will be even more fun. I can’t wait.”

Raj Walia, an Orange County resident, said the last time he saw live cricket in Los Angeles was an exhibition match between India and Pakistan in 1989. He showed up with about 30 friends and family members to see the first match played at the new stadium.

“I’m excited about Major League Cricket,” he said. “I think cricket is becoming more and more popular and will become even bigger with the Olympics.”

Saurabh Netravalkar, a fast bowler for the winning Washington Freedom team, earned the Player of the Match on Wednesday for taking three wickets while conceding just 16 runs. Netravalkar, also a member of the national team, said he enjoyed playing in the new stadium.

“It’s heartwarming to see the atmosphere and the crowd,” he said. “It’s so great for the sport in this country.”

Netravalkar, 34, said he never thought he would see cricket make it to the Olympics during his career.

“But it’s really happening, and that’s exciting,” he said. “Cricket in the US has developed exponentially in the last five years. We are on the right track.”

Karthik Gattepalli, a 26-year-old left-arm spinner for the Los Angeles Knight Riders, said he enjoyed playing with his teammates in front of an excited home crowd.

“With the local fans, the atmosphere and the view of the mountains,” he said. “This is something you can’t beat.”

Gattepalli, who played for the US Under-19 team, sees Major League Cricket as an opportunity for “homegrown kids” like him to thrive in big venues and “make it to the Olympics.”

League CEO Johnny Grave said he and others leading the growth of cricket in the US are now focused on the Olympics.

“The legacy of 2028 is what we are most interested in,” he said. “Today is just the beginning of this level of professional cricket coming to Los Angeles and Southern California. This is a permanent foundation for cricket.”