The Scottish Saltires, supported by Lloyds TSB Scotland, will play four home one-day matches in the space of seven days in the Friends Provident Trophy at the Citylets Grange ground in May next season.

Announcing their domestic fixture schedule for the 2009 season, the England and Wales Cricket Board today unveiled a compacted schedule of FP Trophy fixtures, to create space for the ICC World Twenty20 Championships being staged in London in June.

Scotland’s representative season starts with four away FP Trophy matches, against Middlesex at Lord’s (April 26), Warwickshire at Edgbaston (May 3), Kent at Canterbury (May 4) and Somerset at Taunton (May 11). The return matches will be played in Edinburgh on May 14, 16, 18 and 20.

Roddy Smith, chief executive of Cricket Scotland, said: "We had planned to take some of these games around the country, but the logistics are impossible. However, having four games in seven days in one venue will allow us to promote a ‘cricket week’ atmosphere at Citylets Grange, which may attract more spectators than usual."

Cricket Scotland also revealed its plans for other major representative games next season. Two ICC Intercontinental Cup games, against Canada in July and Ireland in August, will both be staged at the Citylets Mannofield ground in Aberdeen, along with two associated One-Day Internationals against the same teams.

"This ground staged its first ODIs last year and Cricket Scotland wish to stage more of these important games at this venue in 2009," said Roddy Smith. "But the Ireland and Canada fixtures are provisional, subject to results in the ICC World Cup Qualifier in April [in South Africa], which will determine which countries will be awarded ODI accreditation and take part in the 2009/10 Intercontinental Cup competition."

Finally, the expanding list of Scotland Lions fixtures, details of which will be confirmed in due course, will include a three-day match against the MCC in Scotland, three one-day games in Scotland against England Under 19s, six games against English County 2nd XIs, two of which will be the first to be held in Scotland, and the European A-team Championships at the end of the season.

  • March 15-30 Preparation Tour South Africa
  • April 1-18 ICC World Cup Qualifier South Africa
  • April 26 FPT v Middlesex at Lords
  • May 3 FPT v Warwickshire at Edgbaston
  • May 4 FPT v Kent at Canterbury
  • May 11 FPT v Somerset at Taunton
  • May 14 FPT v Middlesex at Citylets Grange
  • May 16 FPT v Warwickshire at Citylets Grange
  • May 18 FPT v Kent at Citylets Grange
  • May 20 FPT v Somerset at Citylets Grange
  • May 23-24 T20 Triangular v PCA Masters/Ireland at John Paul Getty Ground, Wormsley
  • June 2-3 ICC T20 warm-up matches to be confirmed
  • June 6 ICC World T20 Championships v New Zealand at the Oval
  • June 7 ICC World T20 Championships v South Africa at The Oval
  • July 2-5 ICC Intercontinental Cup v Canada at Citylets Mannofield
  • July 7 ODI v Canada at Citylets Mannofield
  • July 8 ODI v Canada at Citylets Mannofield
  • August 17-20 ICC Intercontinental Cup v Ireland at Citylets Mannofield
  • August 22 ODI v Ireland at Citylets Mannofield
  • August 23 ODI v Ireland at Citylets Mannofield
  • August 28 ODI v Australia at Citylets Grange