ECB announce England's home schedule

England will host Australia in two Tests, five one-day internationals and a Twenty20 game this coming summer. They last played each other in 2002-03, when Australia won the two-Test series 1-0.

The first one-day international will form part of the Cheltenham cricket festival, while the last one-dayer and the Twenty20 game at Taunton will be televised live on Sky TV.

"This will be will be a memorable year with a World Cup and three formats of the game on show at home in the biggest international programme we have played," said Gill McConway, the former England spinner who is now the ECB's executive director for women's cricket. "There are more girls than ever playing the sport, and thanks to Sky TV and host venues, there are more opportunities than ever to follow the England women's team."

On the domestic front, the ECB has restructured the format to accommodate the new counties who want to compete. Cornwall, Devon and Dorset will join county competitions for the first time, while Northumberland make a return. What was the old Division Three of the County Championship has now been combined with the former Emerging Counties competition to form a regionally based County Challenge Cup, at the end of which the best-placed counties in the four regions will play off at Loughborough for promotion.

The County Championship, for the elite sides, now has four groups of three teams, and the first stage of the competition will be played around the country on May 30, June 12, and July 10. As in past years, Cambridge will host the last matches for the top counties at the end of July. Frizzell Insurance will continue to sponsor the Challenge Cup and the County Champiosnhip.