Olympic officials have told the International Cricket Council they will not accept a watered-down version of the sport if it is to be included in the 2024 Games.

Six-a-side matches, as well as games on the beach or indoors, have been mooted as formats while cricket decides whether to follow the lead of sports such as rugby and golf and apply for Olympic status.

But at a recent meeting at IOC headquarters in Lausanne, ICC officials are understood to have been told that cricket’s inclusion would be dependent on the presence of the world’s best players. Twenty20 is considered the likeliest format.

Joe Root (left) and James Vince in action for England during the T20 series with Pakistan last month

Even so, both sides emerged from the talks in Switzerland feeling positive about the possibility of cricket rejoining the Olympic family after an absence stretching back to the 1900 Games in Paris, when Great Britain beat France in the tournament’s only game.

The IOC are keen to tap into India’s lucrative TV audience, while cricket would stand to benefit to the tune of millions of dollars of government investment — essentially free money as far as the ICC are concerned.

ICC chief executive Dave Richardson, who still harbours concerns about Olympic cricket cannibalising the World Twenty20, led a three-man delegation to Lausanne.

It did not include ECB president Giles Clarke, who has been vociferous in his opposition to the sport’s inclusion but was unable to attend the meeting. ECB chairman Colin Graves, who is open to the idea, has said that Clarke would have to toe the board’s line while on ICC duty.

The biggest obstacle to cricket’s appearance at the 2024 Games — with the venue yet to be decided — remains the Board of Control for Cricket in India, who are reluctant to cede any control of the sport to the Indian Olympic Association and have no need for extra government funding.

ECB president Giles Clarke (right) has been vociferous in his opposition to cricket's inclusion at the Olympics

Sri Lanka celebrate after winning the last ICC world Twenty20 in Bangladesh last year

There is also the issue of facilities. Specialist cricket stadia may have to be built, and the IOC are keen to avoid familiar accusations of wasted legacies. The four competing host cities are Budapest, Los Angeles, Paris and Rome (Hamburg dropped out of the running last week).

Of those, only Los Angeles, which recently hosted a Twenty20 all-stars game between sides captained by Shane Warne and Sachin Tendulkar, has even the remotest connection to the game.

Richardson’s team will now submit a report to the ICC board in January, when cricket administrators from all over the world will consider the next step.

Meanwhile, the schedule for next March’s World Twenty20 in India is set to be announced late next week following a farcical delay caused by elections at the BCCI.