The status quo

Information received from a man in a trilby in dark woodlands in a remote location just outside Little Rollright in the dead of night strongly suggests that the ECB will stick with the same formats as this season for next season's domestic itinerary.

This surely makes sense. The current itinerary is very far from ideal but better to stick with it (and, most importantly, not dismantle the county championship just as it is proving once again what a fine institution it is) than to rush into making ill-conceived changes. This is, needless to say [so why, you may ask with good reason, am I saying it?] a huge and crucial issue for the future of county cricket so it is essential that any changes are properly thought through.

The man in the trilby, speaking in hushed tones out of the corner of his month, eyes flicking hither and thither, rain battering his gaunt features, asserted that the status quo would remain for 2011 with a new structure put into place for 2012. Then, like a badger into the shadows, he was gone.