Scyld Berry's Blog

England can be expected to win the fourth Test at Lord's on Thursday, barring accidents and injuries.

Hampshire took their first Twenty20 final with a fine team effort, not least from their youthful players, after beating Somerset in the final simply by virtue of having lost fewer wickets.

Somerset (182-5) beat Nottinghamshire (117-4) by three runs (D/L)

All hell broke loose the last time England played Pakistan in a Test at the Oval.

Day two (close): Pakistan (72 & 19-1) trail England (251) by 160 runs

Banned, so we were told, was the A-word. England's cricketers were not talking about the Ashes.

Day three (close): Pakistan (182 and 15-3) trail England (354 & 262-9) by 419 runs

For the new umpiring referral system, being used in England for the first time, there was unanimous approval on Saturday in a random sample of the Trent Bridge crowd.

A fundamental truth about English cricket is taking a long time to sink in. Our domestic game has never made serious money, and it is pretty safe to assume it never will.

Let us pray it never happens. But if England do lose the Ashes this winter, and an official inquiry is set up as there was last time, then this week will be identified as the crucial moment.