THE Benson and Hedges Cup is no more; high summer will bring us its replacement, the Twenty20 Cup, while soggy Spring brings us the fourth round of the remaining and premier knockout competition, the Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy.

It used to be said that a strong Yorkshire side meant a strong England side. Perhaps the selectors were hoping for some reverse psychology to work by picking Anthony McGrath for the first Test against Zimbabwe. Whatever the reason, Yorkshire will have three current England players when they visit New Road this Wednesday as the holders of the C&G Trophy.

As ever, the Tykes started the season as if reasserting their historical dominance of the game, demolishing Northants with a resurgent Darren Gough to the fore. There followed their own demolition by Derbyshire, injury to Gough and a lowest ever National League total of 54. How are the mighty fallen!

Matthew Elliott hero of the final has gone home injured. So the Yorkshire-Aussie link is replaced by the Indian one, not Tendulkar, but the destructive left hander Yuvraj Singh, hero of last year's NatWest Series final win over England.

When will the first wristy clones of Singh or Tendulkar emerge complete with Yorkshire accent I wonder?

For Worcester and New Road it might have been a dry winter, but May is more than making up for it. Batting points and confidence are seeping away as pre-season South African sunshine becomes a distant dream and not just for Andrew Hall.

He will no doubt be disappointed to miss out on selection for the South African Test squad, but it is good news for Worcester's planning and continuity.

Following the C&G, Ben Smith takes his side to Derby, a venue which is to rain and seam as ducks are to water. Not the ideal place for batsmen trying to spend some time in the middle. We haven't played badly yet, we just haven't played. So let's just hope we get four full days.

Meanwhile, back at New Road, things will need to dry out not just for the cricket but for the concerts. Lancashire might not have been able to get a license for Bruce Springsteen, but Worcestershire's second concert weekend looks sure to build on the success of the first. And such ventures are a must these days for sporting venues. Football clubs have felt the squeeze and cricket clubs are doing so now. Specifically, TV companies are not putting up the cash they once were to cover sporting events. Cricket clubs must look to varied and regular use of their space and facilities because the ECB sugar daddy is having to rein back a bit on the pressies.