WE'VE reached that time of year again. Gary Lineker has extracted himself from Jose Mourinho's backside and, along with his footy chums, shuffled off to replenish his admittedly impressive tan, leaving fellow broadcasters to come out to play for a summer of sport.

As we speak, Sue Barker is planning an shop-till-you-drop assault on Bon Marche ahead of Wimbledon, while Claire Balding is booked in for a quick coiffure and new shoulder implants ahead of Royal Ascot.

However, the one big highlight on the horizon is the Ashes. (That is, of course, after the embarassment of the two-test, one-sided series against Bangladesh - a team that would struggle to reach three figures in the Lancashire League. Well, maybe not against Accrington!)

As things stands it's the curtain call for Cricket on Channel 4, fronted by Richie Benaud, who have done a brilliant job in revolutionising the sport in recent years. There seems little doubt that the recent resurgence in popularity can be attributed to the channel's excellent coverage, while innovations such as Hawk-eye have helped make the viewing experience more plesurable.

However, the decision to hand Sky TV the broadcasting rights means that, from next summer, terrestrial viewers will be denied the chance to watch live coverage of England's home Test matches, one-day internationals and Twenty20 internationals for the first time in over 60 years.

It's a defining moment that once again emphasises how much power Sky now wield with their bulging wallets. The whopping deal represents £220million being ploughed into the England Cricket Board - more money than they have ever had before at a time when, ironically, less people will be tuning in to watch.

Four times as many viewers can access Channel 4 than Sky, whose £40 per-month subscriptions are also likely to ward off many pensioners, whose demographic makes up around one-third of cricket's television viewers.

There's also the debate over whether the rejuvenated sport, at it's highest level, should be safeguarded for terrestrial viewers by the Government as one of the so-called 'crown jewels' of sport, alongside such major events as the FA Cup final and the Grand National.

And finally, there is the ECB's scandalous decision to ignore Channel 4's sterling efforts and 'reward' them with a highlights package - instead awarding the contract to Channel 5, a station that around one in 20 households in Great Britain still cannot access!

Non-cricket lovers will doubtless be looking forward to the day when blanket coverage of Test matches does not clog up a channel for eight hours a day.

To those, I ask: What TV 'treats' do you expect will replace it?