After helping England comfortably wrap up the second Ashes Test at Lord’s on Monday, Andrew Flintoff has insisted that he will be fit for the remaining three matches of the series.

All England fans will be praying that this turns out to be the case because let’s face it, without Flintoff, the chances of Andrew Strauss’ men winning the Ashes are reduced significantly. Even from a winning position.

This is because Flintoff inspires players around him like no-one else in world cricket. He carries this England team at times and perhaps most crucially, the Australian team fear him. These are unique attributes for an English cricketer and they are what makes Flintoff such a special player.

During his last three Test matches before retirement, we will hopefully see him at his absolute best as part of a series victory. This would be the perfect way for him to bow out and the thought of this is probably what made his decision about retiring at the end of the series.

What are the chances of him being fit for the remaining three matches though? He has clearly had to push hard to make it through the first two Tests, so surely there is a chance he might have to sit out some of the remaining matches?

Well, as previously mentioned, Flintoff believes he will be available for the remainder of the summer. He says it was never his intention to ‘bow out at Lords’ and that he wants to be ‘part of an Ashes winning team come the last Test at The Oval’.

This is, of course, music to the ears of England cricket fans. Everyone knows that Flintoff is going to have to really push himself and his body to get through these matches, but the thought that he will do so is extremely encouraging for England.

It sums up his character and his personality perfectly. Flintoff’s fast and accurate 10-over spell on Monday morning defied all logic considering his knee problems and perhaps there is more of this to come this summer.

Andy Flower revealed that Flintoff won’t play if he doesn’t pass the relevant fitness Tests, but if Flintoff says he is fit, I would be inclined to believe it.

After the way he bowled on Monday, who would stand in his way? Bowling on one leg or not, Flintoff is the best bowler in this England team!

By Thomas Rooney, a sports blogger who writes about Ashes Test cricket.

Tags: andrew flintoff, andrew strauss, andy flower, australia, england cricket, the ashes

I’ve been very lax in updating the cricket video in the sidebar. I’m a naughty boy. Spank me, matron.

However, update it I have and so the old video has been replaced with the video that is capturing the nation - the Freddie Flintoff Sure Man Pedalogate video. Oh that naughty Freddie. Cashing in on his West Indies drinking misdemeanours. Tsk, tsk.

Anyway, if you missed it, the old cricket video was Andrew Flintoff getting a hat-trick against the West Indies. Enjoy it and remember him before he becomes a show pony for 40/40 20/20 cricket.

Just in case you were in any doubt, here’s the vid in question:

Tags: andrew flintoff, cricket video, england cricket, west indies

UPDATE 11.04AM

BBC News confirms that Flintoff is to retire - Flintoff in post-Ashes Test exit

UPDATE 11.01AM

Both Jonathan Agnew and Alison Mitchell are saying on Twitter that the news is confirmed and that Freddie Flintoff will be retiring from Test cricket after this series.

Confirmed. Flintoff retires from Tests after this series. Still avail for ODIs. “My body says its time to stop”
Jonathan Agnew

Hot off the press and confirmed - Flintoff will retire from Test cricket after the Ashes
Alison Mitchell - BBC TMS

POST PUBLISHED 10.54AM

Early indications are that Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff is to announce his retirement from Test cricket after this Ashes series. A press conference is due to be held at 12.30pm today to confirm this news but Twitter is ablaze this morning with speculation.

Expecting confirmation at 11 that Flintoff is retiring from Tests after this series. Not surprising to be honest.
Jonathan Agnew

Apparently players were in a huddle on nursery ground earlier, then handshakes all round with Fred…
Alison Mitchell - TMS

You have to say that, if true, and Flintoff really is retiring from Test cricket that it’s no great surprise. With his history of injuries and the pressure put on the body playing the five day game, it was looking unlikely that he’d carry on for much longer anyway although I’m surprised at the timing of the announcement.

If it is true and Flintoff is to retire from Test cricket then I hope the ECB take a long hard look at themselves and the ridiculously congested international fixture list they have conspired to produce. Test cricket is dying on it’s arse and by shoehorning in as many meaningless ODI’s and T20 fixtures into the calendar year, they’re putting undue pressure on their players and, as a result, one of their few box office attractions in the five day game is about to call it a day.

Tags: andrew flintoff, england cricket, the ashes

If ever you thought that Sky Sports was too expensive, I’d suggest that the look on Pontings face in the closing minutes of the first Ashes Test was worth every single penny. He looked like a bulldog licking piss off a nettle.

Jimmy Anderson may well be the record holder for the most number of innings since debut without a duck but at 6pm yesterday you wouldn’t have bet on him and Monty batting out three quarters of an hour and saving the Test, would you? Let’s be honest here. Panesar only bats at number eleven because you can’t put him at number 12.Yet somehow survive they did and we go to Lord’s all square.

If I’d written this post at lunch on day 5 the title would have been something along the lines of “Spineless” or “Clueless” or “You Bunch Of Fucking Wankers”. However, since I was heading out the door to play cricket myself, I didn’t get a chance to update the blog so, instead, I left this message on Twitter:

Nuts to this. I’m off to play cricket. ECB selectors I’m available if you’re looking for another hopeless batsman who can’t spin the ball

True enough, I bowled 5 overs without the ball deviating so much as a millimetre and I got out playing a soft shot for 7 so I made sure my mobile was on as I headed off to the bar to watch the last knockings in the Cardiff Test. I’d guessed we were nine down by the collective groans from the handful of die hards sitting in front of the TV.

The masochistic tendencies shown by England cricket fans would have the Marquis de Sade wincing. However this random collection of cricket enthusiasts and cricket less than enthusiasts (i.e. their wives) were full of optimism that Jimmy and Monty could save the game. Full of optimism or Kronenbourg. One of the two.

The final 45 minutes of this match proved why Test match cricket is the premium version of the game. To hear a capacity crowd cheering every dot ball. To see the Australian bowlers straining every sinew of their body to get that last wicket. To see monkey man Ponting throwing his toys out the pram when the England physio came on.

And that brings me nicely on to my next point. This game finished a draw because Ricky Ponting is the worst Australian captain since Kim Hughes. He is a world class batsman but, as a captain, he is shocking. It was easy for him when he could turn to Shane Warne or Glenn McGrath and chuck them the ball. He had players like Hayden, Langer and Gilchrist to get him out of the shit with the bat. Take all of them away and he’s shown up for being what he really is. A crap captain. Just what in the name of Stuart Broads jockstrap was he thinking in bringing on Marcus North to bowl the last few overs?

England were woeful in this Test. Of the 15 sessions of play, you can probably give the convicts Australians all but two. At the time I thought 435 was a below par score but enough for us to make a match of it. However the next few days showed up an alarming lack of application by the England bowlers. Outside of Freddie Flintoff’s opening spell, I never really saw a wicket coming. Credit where it’s due, with the exception of Mister Cricket (who should surely be renamed Mister Ball) the Aussie batsman looked superb.

As I say, I don’t rate his captaincy but Ponting is one of the best Test match batsmen I have seen. Katich was a completely different player to the one we saw here in ‘05 and, as predicted by Tony from After Grog Blog Haddins batting average in on the way up. As a batting line up the Aussies look pretty solid.

However, despite taking 19 wickets, I still don’t rate their bowling attack. Mitchell Johnson is a bit Harmisonesque - one minute he looks a world beater, the next he looks like a wife beater. Hilfenhaus is short of the couple of yards of pace that would not only make him a genuinely quick bowler but also make it nigh on impossible for any commentator to finish saying his name before the ball hit the stumps. Peter Siddle will never be taken seriously as a Test bowler whilst he has a whores muff stapled to his chin and after a long bowling spell Nathan Hauritz looks too much like Gareth Gates to be a world class spinner. (Note: I tried to find a picture to illustrate this but after a Google search for “hot and sweaty Gareth Gates” I gave up as I had some sick in my mouth)

England were outplayed in this Test, there’s no question of that, but the fact remains that the series remains level with four to play. It’s interesting to see that Australia’s answer to Mystic Meg - Glenn McGrath - has now changed his prediction to a 4-0 series win. Well done, Glenn. I’m glad to see that you’ve spent your retirement mastering the rudiments of mathematics. Not for the first time, though, I’m going to disagree with you. I still stand by my original prediction of a 2-1 series win.

Why?

1. That losing draw in Cardiff will be the kick up the arse some of those England players needed. Too many of them were believing their own press and they listened to too much of the “this Australian team is the worst to come here for years” nonsense the press have been spouting off for the last few months. Sure, they’re not the Invincibles but you put an Australian dominoes team up against the English and they will fight you every single inch of the way so do not underestimate the old enemy.
2. As a unit, our bowling attack will not perform as badly as that again. In 30 years of watching Test cricket I’ve not witnessed such an inept display as that shown by Messrs Anderson, Broad, Swann, Flintoff or Panesar so the chances of it happening twice in a couple of months is unlikely.
3. Kevin Pietersen will have watched his dismissals in this Test match over and over on tape and realised that his lucrative sponsorship deals are at risk if he ever plays shots like that again. Let’s face it, if you were a marketing exec for sadida*would you want your brand associated with a clueless fuckwit?
4. Likewise Alastair Cook. His eyeliner contract with lemmiR* will be in jeopardy if he fails at Lord’s.
5. England will drop Monty Panesar. I’m sorry, Monty, I know I’ve championed you in the past but I’m of the same belief as Shane Warne. I don’t believe you’ve learnt enough in your 30+ Test matches to be considered a Test match player. Yes, I know you saved the game this time but, let’s face it, when New Zealand’s Chris Martin looks a better batter and Steven Hawking looks a more mobile fielder, you’ve got to be able to turn it on with the ball. Or just turn it.
6. The England squad and the entire backroom staff - all 358 of them - would not dare to do anything other than win the series 2-1. They know I have a tenner riding on it and that I will be after them if they fail me. I have connections, you know, and I also know where every single one of them will be on August 24th so let that be a warning.

Despite an exceptionally disappointing performance by England, the series remains all square going into the Lord’s Test match. Mystic McGrath points out that we’ve not won an Ashes Test there since 1934 and, to be honest, I don’t see much changing this time around. However, given the weather forecast, my gut feeling is another draw (11/10 at both Paddy Power and Sportingbet) with England snatching back some pride by playing four seamers and giving the Aussie top order a working over.

*- name changed to prevent expensive lawsuits

Tags: andrew flintoff, andrew strauss, australia, cardiff, england cricket, jimmy anderson, kevin pietersen, monty panesar, paul collingwood, ricky ponting, the ashes

It came as quite a surprise to me that Andrew Strauss was left out of England’s provisional 30-man squad for the ICC World Twenty20 tournament.

After his more than acceptable performances in the ODI games against the West Indies in recent weeks, I thought he had done enough. Especially when you consider how positively he batted when England were chasing 135 in 20 overs during the fourth match of the series.

However, it appears that the England selectors were unconvinced that he had a future in the limited overs game and decided to go without him for this tournament. It means that his future in the 50-over game also has to be in doubt.

Another result of this decision is that England will have split captaincy this summer. Not ideal in my opinion. It is how it is though, so who are the candidates to take charge of the England Twenty20 World Cup side this summer?

Kevin Pietersen – This would be an interesting move wouldn’t it? Less than a year after controversially resigning, KP could be back in charge as England hosts a World Twenty20 tournament. It could happen, but I think the selectors will think carefully about this one.

Paul Collingwood – Colly stepped down from the ODI captaincy when Michael Vaughan resigned from the Test role. Personally, I don’t think he would take this position even if offered it.

Andrew Flintoff – I hope the selectors steer well clear of even considering appointing Flintoff. He needs to be left to play his cricket and be England’s most dangerous and influential bowler.

Rob Key – Should the position just be a temporary measure, then the Kent skipper could fit the role perfectly. He is highly rated as a captain and knows this form of the game better than most. Is he good enough to be in the team though?

Shaun Udal – The 40-year-old will be delighted he is even in the squad. Having led Middlesex to Twenty20 success last year, the selectors may well consider him for a more senior role in the England team. Unlikely, but you never know.

So, these are the five candidates. The two front-runners, in my opinion, are Pietersen and Key. Should the selectors feel the timing is right to hand KP the role, then he is the obvious choice.

Should they feel they need to wait a while before handing him the captaincy again, Key could be handed the responsibility. A decision is expected to be made when a new team director is appointed.

Guest Post by Thomas Rooney

Tags: andrew flintoff, andrew strauss, england cricket, icc world twenty20, kevin pietersen, paul collingwood, rob key, shaun udal