Winter already?

This is wrong, so wrong. A fascinating summer of cricket has barely finished and yet already England are playing their first match of the winter, with a friendly today against a Sri Lankan XI ahead of a series of five ODIs. Most of the England one-day side, having missed the end of the county season because of the world Twenty20, flew straight from South Africa to Colombo. And, most bizarrely, after the five one-dayers the team will fly home for five weeks before flying back out to Sri Lanka in November for two first-class matches and three Tests. In the modern sensibility, I hope they are offsetting their carbon footprint by building a windmill or something while they are out there.

I love my cricket - even one-day cricket - but can't we have a pause for breath occasionally, to digest what has just gone rather than moving on yet again to another feast?