The number of people actively participating in cricket outside the Test-playing countries increased 17% in 2007, according to the ICC.

The research, carried out by the ICC's development program, was collated from 33 Associate and 58 Affiliate members. It showed that there were 338,051 male and female players in those countries in 2007, an increase of 49,158 on the previous year. Since 2002, when there were 144,047 participants, there has been a 135% rise.

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The last time an English team played in a World Cup Final was 1992 and we have bemoaned the performance of our one-day side ever since, but all that changed last Friday when an English team - Brighton and Hove CC - went one better than Graham Gooch's team in Australia all those years ago. Well, sort of.

The Ice Cricket World Cup may not yet be inked in to everyone's sporting calendar, but after the events in Riga, Latvia this weekend, it is certainly on the rise, and what's more it was two English teams in the final while the Australians and Indians failed to make it out of their group.

Alan Curr reports from the Ice Cricket World Cup in Riga, Latvia. Click here for the full report on Cricinfo.