It is a foretaste of next year's World Cup, when many of the 42 matches at 21 venues will obviously not involve England, and a sign too of the possible shape of future seasons in Britain when ``slightly more international cricket can be expected'' as a senior official at the England and Wales Cricket Board put it yesterday.
He and his colleagues, some of them involved in negotiations for the new television contract with nine interested companies - a resolution is not expected until late September - will be encouraged by the fact that Nottinghamshire are expecting a crowd of around 10,000 today.
South Africa beat Sri Lanka by two matches to one in a protracted series, also involving Pakistan in South Africa in April, and also won the Test series 2-0 but they come to Nottingham still bitterly disappointed after losing the final Test at Headingley and weary from being too long on the road. Allan Donald has stayed on for what Hansie Cronje called ``unfinished business'' but although the Sri Lankans are suddenly going to face more demanding opposition than they so far have against county sides, mainly below full strength, they have a good chance of reminding everyone of their worth.
Cricket students know all about the quality of the veterans Arjuna Ranatunga, Aravinda de Silva - a batting genius - and Sanath Jayasuriya but some of the names in the current side like Marvan Atapattu and Mahele Jayawardene, Test centurions both, have yet to become figures of substance in public consciousness.
All the Sri Lankans will still be keen to show once more why it was that a country considered a cricket outpost a quarter of a century ago surprised Australia by scoring 276 for four against them at the Oval in the first World Cup in 1975 and won the competition outright 20 years later.
Indeed eight of the side that recorded that famous World Cup triumph will be on duty today, assuming Jayasuriya recovers from the nasty blows to his knuckles and body suffered in their recent game against Kent.
After a bad start to their current tour the Sri Lankans are thoroughly acclimatised, and they have won four one-day games in succession. Without Chaminda Vaas, their leading fast bowler, who is now deemed very unlikely to join the touring party in time for the Test at the Oval, they are short of seam bowling quality but in Muttiah Muralitharan they have an off-spinner who is both freakish and freakishly good and their batting proves, time and again, a match for most targets.
Coloured logo mats will appear on the outfield at Trent Bridge today and coloured clothes and white balls will be in use throughout this tournament. Michael Browning, the Australian in charge of promoting the World Cup, promises a ``sneak preview'' of some of the ``new faces of cricket'' at which the World Cup is aimed. The first priority, however, is that the cricket itself should be attractive and with Jonty Rhodes and Aravinda de Silva in prime form there should be few worries on that score.
Dean Headley, who was ever-present during England's Champions' Trophy success in Sharjah last December, has been added to England's triangular tournament squad as cover for Angus Fraser, who has been suffering from back spasms.
South Africa: G Kirsten, M Rindel, J H Kallis, D J Cullinan, *W J Cronje, J N Rhodes, S M Pollock, P L Symcox, -M V Boucher, A A Donald, S Elworthy.
Sri Lanka (from): S T Jayasuriya, -R S Kaluwitharana, R P Arnold, M S Atapattu, P A de Silva, *A Ranatunga, P W Jayawardene, H P Tillekeratne, U C Hathurusinghe, H D P K Dharmasena, G P Wickremasinghe, M Muralitharan, S A Perera.