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CAMERAPRESS LONDON · NICKYJOHNSTON / GETTY / AVIDLEVENE · EYEVINE
Andrew Flintoff bowls at 90mph and parties even harder which is why he hasn’t taken his recent enforced break lying down
The iconic image of Andrew — aka Freddie — Flintoff was formed when the giant of English cricket bent down to comfort defeated opponent Brett Lee as his England teammates celebrated victory in the extraordinary Edgbaston Ashes Test of 2005. It is revealing of the man as well as the sportsman.
It shows humanity within the hero; a generosity of spirit which led him to think of others, even in his moment of greatest elation. Lee appreciated the gesture so much he asked Flintoff to sign a print of the picture for him.
It is not just Englishmen but all cricket enthusiasts who will be crossing their fingers for Flintoff as the South African tour unfolds over the summer, a decade on from his Test debut against the same opponents.
His fourth ankle operation, which he underwent last October, was four too many for a fast bowler. A fifth would most likely spell the end of his career. At 30, that would be a terrible waste of the greatest English all-round talent to have emerged since Ian Botham.
The fragility of his situation almost made it a relief that the injury which ruled him out of this season’s opening series against New Zealand was a common-or-garden side strain. This was in spite of the fact that he had been inked into the England Test side for the first time in 16 months, after proving his fitness with some caustic early-season bowling for Lancashire.
“It was a test of my patience but after spending six months on an ankle rehab, another six weeks I could handle,” said Flintoff.
“I can’t pretend that it wasn’t frustrating though. My batting hadn’t got started but I was bowling as well as I have bowled. The ankle felt great and I wanted to play in the First Test against New Zealand. Maybe I built that up too much. The disappointment was huge when I found out I probably would have been picked.
Flintoff’s success has
helped to rekindle the
popularity of english
cricket
“The start of this season felt like the first time ever I was playing injury-free — without back problems or some sort of ankle problem.
“Even during the 2005 Ashes I had to have my ankle jabbed halfway through that series. I got through it and I bowled alright but this season I was running into bowl and finding pace without too much effort.
“Coming back after the operation I was confident everything was going to be fine but there was a bit of doubt at the back of my mind. That has been eradicated to some extent but I just hope that, come September, I have played all through the second half of the season and I will be still saying these same things.”
Recovery from his
most recent ankle
operation meant he
could spend some
quality time with
his family
THE DAMAGE Flintoff did to himself playing through the pain is impossible to quantify — propelling a cricket ball towards a batsman at 90 miles per hour is an unnatural enough business at the best of times, let alone with your body weight crashing down on a damaged ankle.
His reward for his lion-hearted performances has been a cocktail of despair since that golden summer three years ago. Freddie being Freddie, he tends to see the glass as half full rather than half empty, whatever fate may throw at him — as many a barman will testify.
The enforced lay-offs have allowed him to spend cherished time with his wife Rachael and three young children: four-year-old Holly, two-year-old Corey, and Rocky, who arrived in April.
“There have been some low times but I’ve had fun as well,” he said. “I have been at home more. I spent eight weeks out in Florida before Christmas and my family came out with me. The kids have been great. No matter what disappointment I’ve had on a cricket field or through injury, they still treat me the same.”
IN CONTRAST, England have missed their talisman and social secretary incalculably over the past 18 months. He may be a dodgy pedalo pilot but he is a once-in-a-generation cricketer.
To have Flintoff at the peak of his powers next summer for the Ashes would make such a difference to England but it is probably best not to get ahead of ourselves.
This summer’s test series
against south africa will
provide a test of Flintoff’s
fitness
Flintoff has been through too much to risk looking too far into the distance — a sensible outlook for a side still finding its feet under Peter Moores as well. Seeing off the chronically weak New Zealanders 2-0 does not mean they are in any fit state yet to contemplate mugging Australia.
“Everyone talks about the Ashes and they are coming up next year but there is a lot of cricket between now and then. We are playing South Africa — and they are a fine team — and then we have India who are a top side in their home conditions and the West Indies,” said Flintoff.
“It is going to be a tough winter but they are sides we will be looking to beat. The key to our success in 2005 was that in the run-up to that Ashes series we had played against everyone else in the world and beaten them.”
INDIA is where Flintoff memorably cranked up Johnny Cash in the dressing room to inspire the side to a series-squaring victory in Mumbai on England’s last visit, and it will be an interesting tour. For a start, it pits Flintoff against one of his heroes — Sachin Tendulkar — but it also takes England into the new engine room of the world game.
The advent of the mega-rupee Indian Premier League this year tilted the sport on its axis. The glitz and glamour in the new 20-over tournament turned heads around the globe, Flintoff’s included — when he could get to see it.
“I haven’t got Setanta at home so I haven’t seen a great deal of it but I saw Brendon McCullum smashing everyone about in the first game when Lancashire were rained off at The Oval. By all accounts it seems to have been a success with the crowds they’ve had,” said Flintoff.
“I don’t think Twenty20 is a fad. It’s a form of the game that is extremely popular, not just with fans but increasingly with the players. It is exciting and it is fast.
“I played 20-over cricket every night of the week for various age groups growing up but I reckon I’ve only played about ten senior games. I’d be alright at it, I think.”
ENGLAND is set to stage the second world championship next June while the inaugural Twenty20 Champions League — featuring the leading domestic sides from England, Australia, India and South Africa — is planned for the autumn. The sport is in flux and old certainties have gone out of the window with the money being thrown at cricket’s brash new lovechild by Texan tycoons and Bollywood billionaires.
Flintoff’s show of sympathy
for Brett Lee has become
symbol of modern sportmanship
“I wouldn’t say it was inconceivable that we end up with cities playing. I’d love to run in from the Tom Finney End for Preston at Deepdale. Now that would be great,” laughed Flintoff.
“It will be interesting to see how Twenty20 affects oneday internationals. Only time will tell but I think, with the interest in it and the excitement around it, you will find that we are playing more of it.
“There have been measures to change 50-over cricket — they have brought in powerplays and super-subs and whether you could jazz it up a bit more I don’t know. But that might be under more of a threat than Test matches.
“Test cricket is still the ultimate and it is still the most enjoyable form of the game for me. You have the chance to bat time and construct an innings or put a spell together which is the most rewarding part of the game.
“I don’t think that 2005 Ashes series will ever be replicated. Each Test match was different but in some ways each one became more entertaining. They had everything with all the drama that was going on.”
Flintoff was at the centre of most of that compelling action. A nation — and a sport — can only hope and pray he will be again in 12 months’ time.
Andrew Flintoff is a brand ambassador for Volkswagen Touareg, the official vehicle of the England cricket team. The Touareg R50 was launched in March this year.
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