As the season enters its final month, it is time to reveal the details of the little wager I have struck with Steve Kirby.

Whether I was wise to do so or not, I bet him at the beginning of the season that I would take more first-class wickets than he would.

And at the moment, it really is too close to call.

As things stand going into the latest County Championship game against Middlesex at Lord's, I have taken 47 wickets as opposed to Steve's 45. But I boast a superior average, having taken mine at 18.97 to his 20.48, so I'll be claiming victory in the event that we finish the season with the same number of victims.

One thing is for sure, neither of us is prepared to lose and our little bet is keeping us both on our toes during what promises to be an exciting conclusion to the Championship campaign.

Of course, I'm confident of winning, especially as the wickets in September tend to suit me better.

Kirbs proves rather more potent during the middle months of July and August and I think I have done well to keep ahead of him. He's now the one under all the pressure and I'm looking forward to taking his money off him.

On a serious note, little side bets like that are a good thing if they generate an additional competitive edge. And they are OK so long as the team is doing well.

Not only do Steve and I have the kind of rivalry which brings out the best in us, we also work together as a team and we have taken many of our wickets this summer while bowling in tandem.

With four games to go in the Championship, we have to maintain our form if we want to win promotion from the first division.

On that particular note, I was relieved to learn that the powers that be at Lord's have decided to leave the four-day competition as it is for the foreseeable future. The current model of two divisions, which requires counties to play eight games at home and eight away, is being retained until 2013 – and that has to be good news for the England Test side.

Regular readers of this column will know my feelings on this issue and a competitive County Championship is an absolute prerequisite for producing a healthy breeding ground for international players of the future.

An extended Twenty20 competition, based upon two divisions of nine teams, is roughly what we expected and appears to make perfect sense. But I am disappointed the ECB have seen fit to ditch domestic 50-over cricket from next season.

The decision to revert to a 40-over competition seems strange, given that England are still required to play 50-over one-day internationals.

That situation is under review by the ICC but, while 50-over cricket remains the order of the day on the international stage, I believe our domestic structure should mirror that. Finally, I cannot sign off this week without a mention of England's fantastic Ashes triumph.

Like most cricket enthusiasts in this country, I was glued to my television set when Graeme Swann removed my former Gloucestershire team-mate Mike Hussey to clinch victory in the fifth and final Test at The Oval.

It was a moment I'm sure the entire country shared in and winning the series will definitely mean everything to English cricket.

While our win didn't quite have the same emotion as the one four years ago, the scenes after the game were nevertheless emotional.

Beating Australia was a fitting finale for Andrew Flintoff, a player who has been such a wonderful and wholehearted servant to English cricket. His was the best possible farewell to Test match cricket.

Now begins the task of replacing him and, I suspect, that will be no easy matter.