The introduction of quarter-finals, a Derby Day feature, and a first match at Lord's are the key features of the 2004 Twenty20 Cup fixture list, which was published today by the England and Wales Cricket Board.
The second year of cricket's newest competition sees the addition of a
quarter-finals stage, which is the only major structural change to the Cup.
The top two teams in each of the three regional groups plus the two best third placed teams will progress to the quarter finals, which will be played in the week after the group stages end.

A new Derby Day feature has been included to provide a special evening of Twenty20 Cup passion on Friday 9 July. Five of the country's major derby matches will take place on the same night: Sussex v Hampshire, Warwickshire v Worcestershire, Nottinghamshire v Derbyshire, Gloucestershire v Somerset and Surrey v Kent.

Lord's, meanwhile, will host its first ever Twenty20 Cup match - the London Derby, Middlesex v Surrey, on Thurs 15 July.

The 2004 Twenty20 Cup will start with a full programme of matches on Friday 2 July and the finals day will be held at Edgbaston on Saturday 7 August.
In addition, the first ever Twenty20 international match will take place on Thursday 5 August when the England Women's team take on New Zealand at Hove.
Research undertaken during this year's Twenty20 Cup competition has
suggested that the ECB's desire to reach a new and younger audience was realised - 62% of the audience was under 34 and 23% were female, compared to 16% and 15% respectively at a typical Frizzell County Championship match.
The research also showed that 32% of females were watching a cricket match for the first time. In addition, 36% of men, 58% of women and 47% of under 25s stated that their image of cricket had changed in a positive way as a result of their Twenty20 Cup experiences.