After the storm on Friday morning, it was surprising to see local games start on time in spite of damaged sight screens - which seemed to go for a walk in the storm or be blown over - and covers that were blown off the pitch.

At least the sun came out and helped dry up everything and games avoided the rain that came later in the evening. Not surprisingly, there were some pretty low scores, as good bowling on rain-affected pitches was the order of the day, along with some excellent catching.

I was asked if an appeal must be made immediately - the answer is no, an appeal need not be made at the time of the incident. There are two main restrictions on when an appeal can be made.

First, it must be made before the ball next comes into play after the incident. The call of over does not stop an appeal from being made Once the bowler begins his run-up or action to deliver the next ball, it is too late to answer an appeal.

Secondly, it must be before time is called in that session of play. Hence at drinks you will find the umpires will call time to stop any chance of player discussion over drinks about a possible run-out or other dismissal on the last ball of that over.

Sometimes a captain may regret an appeal made by one of his team-mates, feeling it is not within the spirit of the game. An example would be a bowler and batter colliding accidentally, leaving the batter out of his ground. If the wicket is then put down, the umpire must give the batter out on appeal. However, a captain may feel this wicket is not deserved as it came about due to the collision and ask for the appeal to be withdrawn. In order to do this, the captain must seek the permission of the appropriate umpire. It must be done before the ball comes into play for the next delivery. The umpire must use judgement over whether to accept the withdrawal, but should not refuse without good reason. If permission is given, it is the umpire who calls the batter back not the captain.

In cases of collision, I have seen umpires ask captains if they want an appeal to stand and unfortunately on some occasions the captain has said yes, so the umpire has no alternative but to give the batter out.