The Blast has been slimmed down this season and will all be played in one block before the start of The Hundred.

A review into the white-ball domestic structure led by the counties – in consultation with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) – recommended the changes with an eye on player welfare and competition narrative.

The group stage has been reduced by two games to 12 matches per side, with the quarter-finals and Finals Day following on directly in July.

It means the competition is wrapped up in one block, albeit with two County Championship rounds sandwiched in the middle of the 12 T20 fixtures in mid-June.

The two groups of nine sides have also been replaced by three groups of six, split into north, central and south sections as they were in 2020.

The top two teams in each group plus the best two third-placed teams progress to the quarter-finals.

North Group: Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Lancashire, Durham, Yorkshire and Leicestershire

Central Group: Gloucestershire, Northamptonshire, Birmingham, Somerset, Glamorgan, Worcestershire

South Group: Surrey, Sussex, Kent, Middlesex, Essex, Hampshire

Each county plays the other teams in their group home and away – a total of 10 matches – with an additional home game against a county from outside their group and one away game against a side from another group.

Key dates

22 May: Group stages begin

12 July: Group stages end

15 July: Quarter-finals

18 July: Finals Day (Edgbaston)