Cricket in England
Cricket in England is one of the most popular sports in the country and is known to have been played in England since the 16th century. The Marylebone Cricket Club, based at Lords, developed the modern rules of play and conduct.There are eighteen professional county clubs, seventeen of them in England and one in Wales. All eighteen counties are named after, and were originally representative of, historic counties. These clubs are heavily dependent on subsidies from the England and Wales Cricket Board, which makes its money from television and endorsement contracts and attendances at international matches. The English cricket season traditionally starts at the beginning of April and runs though to the second half of September although in recent years counties have played pre season friendly matches at the very end of March.
International cricket in 2012
The 2012 international cricket season was from April 2012 to August 2012. One year after gaining the number-one ranking in the ICC Test Championship, England lost the ranking to South Africa in August 2012 following a 0–2 Test series defeat at home. Also in August 2012, England rose to number one in the ICC ODI Championship following ten consecutive ODI victories and the annual update of the rankings. The update also put South Africa and India within one rankings point behind England.