To Summarise where we are currently at 2020...

So to sum up we have a 4-day competition that expects the players to play for 20 out of 25 days of which seven counties don't really want to play in.  The counties prep will probably consist of a couple of 2 day friendlies. A recipe for injuries?

We have a blast competition played when the schools are back on cold September evenings where only the top team and best runners-up qualify. No quarter-finals means in all probability a lot of dead rubber games.

All potentially behind closed doors. Ill-conceived?

But a Test Match starts today, weather and other factors permitting.

Counties agree to play red-ball and T20 cricket this summer

Season will finish in October after counties agreed not to scrap first-class cricket entirely

Tim Wigmore - Daily Telegraph online

The men's domestic cricket season will begin with a first-class competition on August 1, which will be called the Bob Willis Trophy. 

There had been disagreement between counties about whether to play first-class or one-day matches, in addition to the lucrative Twenty20 Blast competition, but a majority of chairmen voted on Tuesday afternoon to play a red-ball competition this summer. 

As Telegraph Sport first revealed in March, the domestic season will run until October for the first time in history. The new fixture list will be confirmed in the coming days and will feature a first-class competition played in three regional groups, with the two best-placed teams meeting in the final at Lord’s which will finish in October.

The first-class competition will be named after Bob Willis, the former England fast bowler and commentator, who died last December. The tournament will replace the County Championship, which will not be played this year, with counties believing that it would be unfair to have promotion and relegation and an official County Championship winner in such a truncated season.

The Twenty20 Blast competition — the chief revenue-earner for counties — will begin on August 27, and will be played in the same three regional groups. The three group winners, and best-placed runner-up, will then proceed to finals days. 

Counties are making the case that cricket is uniquely well-suited to allowing some crowds in and could act as a test case for crowds being reintroduced for live sport. It is hoped that there could be limited crowds permitted for some first-class matches in August and then for the T20 Blast campaign. Counties also have plans to improve their live-streaming of games to enable fans who cannot attend to watch matches online.

The ECB insists health matters are of paramount importance and says counties will face further assessments to ensure it is safe for play to resume.

"The safety and wellbeing of all players, staff and officials remains the priority of the ECB," read a statement.

"All first-class counties will undergo further medical risk assessments and venue compliance approval as planning progresses to ensure safe environments for the start of the men's domestic season."

The problems associated with playing red-ball cricket this summer have raised questions about whether all 18 counties will continue to play first-class cricket, even when the calendar returns to normal. 

Trentbridge.co.uk

The ECB have released the following statement confirming the formats of the game which will be contested by first-class counties in 2020:

The First-Class Counties have agreed to play both red-ball and white-ball cricket during this summer’s shortened men’s domestic season.

A majority vote was reached at a meeting of the FCC chairs today following approval by the ECB Board last month for the new season to commence on August 1.

Today’s agreement by the FCCs will be passed on for ECB Board approval in the coming days after which the details of the new fixture schedule will be drawn up and then announced.

The safety and wellbeing of all players, staff and officials remains the priority of the ECB and all FCCs will undergo further medical risk assessments and venue compliance approval as planning progresses to ensure safe environments for the start of the men’s domestic season.

Ticket holders for men's domestic matches and FCC members are set to be contacted by venues with the options available to them after a new fixture schedule is announced.

George Dobell

Counties may be offered an opt-out of this season's first-class competition as part of plans to restart domestic cricket.

While the first-class counties voted by a narrow margin to play first-class and T20 cricket in the abbreviated 2020 season, it is understood one or two retain strong reservations about hotel stays. Hampshire, in particular, are understood to have doubts about the safety of such trips. They, along with several other sides, voted to start the season with a 50-over competition and not play first-class cricket in 2020.

What the vote means in essence is that the county season will begin at the start of August. It will, subject to withdrawals, feature three regional groups of six teams who will each contest five first-class games. The two top sides at the end of that qualifying period will contest a final played over five days at Lord's which is likely to start on September 29 and could finish as late as October 3.

Discussions over what to call the competition are ongoing, but the Bob Willis Trophy is a strong possibility. Willis, the former England captain, died in December. The counties are hopeful this game will be broadcast by Sky but will attempt to stream it if not.

The T20 Blast season will start on August 27 and end with Finals Day at Edgbaston on September 26. Clubs remain confident that some spectators will be allowed into grounds before the end of the season. There will be no domestic 50-over cricket this year.

Although the vote was far from unanimous - unconfirmed reports suggests it finished 11-7 - most clubs appear happy to go with the majority decision. Leicestershire, for example, expressed a preference to start the season with List A cricket but have confirmed they will happily take part in the first-class competition. It may be relevant that it was made clear to reluctant counties that if they opted out of first-class cricket this season, they may not be welcomed back in the future.

Hampshire are probably the most reluctant at this stage. It is understood that, during the meeting of county chairs to discuss options, their chairman Rod Bransgrove expressed strong discomfort over asking players to put themselves in positions where they could be at risk of illness or injury. It is also understood that, following the vote, he has formed a sub-committee of the Hampshire board that will advise on the safety implications of away travel. At this stage, the club have yet to confirm their intentions.

There is some irony in Hampshire's reluctance to stay in hotels. The England and West Indies squads as well as broadcasters from Sky and the BBC are all currently staying in hotels at the Ageas Bowl, their home ground. But the level of investment into creating something approaching bio-secure venues for international teams cannot be replicated at a domestic level and there have been concerns expressed that county players are not receiving the same level of protection as international players. All players will be obliged to opt in before they are considered for selection.

The majority of the counties, however, hope that as passions cool there will be an acceptance over the schedule. They remain hopeful that all 18 counties will participate. The ECB have put no deadline on counties confirming their involvement, but hope to sign the schedule off at board level later this week.

With the city of Leicester currently in lockdown, it may well be that the club's home games are played at Kibworth CC. Lancashire, meanwhile, are expected to play their home games at Liverpool, while Hampshire are currently training at Arundel. Derbyshire, too, may lose their ground for several weeks as it is likely to be the venue for women's internationals.