Early years: criticism, injury and fitness troubles Flintoff was captain of the England Under-19 team for their tour to
Pakistan in 1996/7 and at home against
Zimbabwe in 1997. He made his
Test match debut for England in 1998 against
South Africa at
Trent Bridge, in a match remembered for its second-innings duel between
Mike Atherton and
Allan Donald; Flintoff and
Jacques Kallis exchanged wickets. Nonetheless, his struggle to make the grade at county level continued, he found form only intermittently, though often explosively when he did so. In 2000, he scored 135 not out in the quarterfinals of the
Natwest Trophy against
Surrey, which
David Gower described as "the most awesome innings we are ever going to see on a cricket field". In the same year England's management made clear they were unhappy with his fitness and weight, Flintoff responded to his critics with 42 not out in a one-day game against
Zimbabwe on his home ground of
Old Trafford, forming an explosive second-wicket stand with
Graeme Hick; as he collected the Man of the Match award he remarked his performance was "not bad for a fat lad". Although he lost his England place during 2001, he remodelled his bowling action and gained a place on the 2001–02 tour to
India. Though he hit possibly his worst international batting form during the Test series, frustrating him to the point that he broke down in tears in the dressing room at one stage, he later saw the tour as a turning point in his career, specifically the crucial final one-day match. Entrusted with bowling the final over with India needing 11 to win, he ran out
Anil Kumble and bowled
Javagal Srinath with successive balls to win the match, taking off his shirt in celebration, which was mimicked by
Sourav Ganguly in a later match.
Improved consistency, step-up to key international player In 2002, Flintoff scored his maiden Test century against New Zealand. By 2003, a newer, fitter Flintoff started to justify the comparisons with
Botham. Up to the end of 2002, he had averaged just 19 with the bat and 47 with the ball; from 2003 to the end of the 2005 Ashes series, the corresponding figures were 43 and 28. In the summer of 2003 he scored a century and three fifties in the five-Test series against
South Africa at home. He continued to play well on the tour of the
West Indies in March and April 2004, taking five wickets in the Test in Barbados and scoring a century in Antigua. In early 2004 he was named as a
Wisden Cricketer of the Year. Although injury prevented him from bowling, he was called into the England squad for the 2004 NatWest
One Day International (ODI) Series against
New Zealand and the
West Indies as a specialist batsman, scoring two consecutive centuries in the series and hitting seven
sixes in one
innings. He matched this haul in the Second Test against the West Indies at
Edgbaston in July, hitting a
first-class best figure of 167. During this innings, watched by a crowd of 20,000, Flintoff hit a
six into the top tier of the Ryder Stand. A man stood to claim the catch and dropped it – it was Flintoff's father. Over the course of England's record-breaking summer, he hit a half-century in all seven victorious Tests against
New Zealand and the
West Indies. On returning to the
one-day game as an
all-rounder in September he fell agonisingly short of a third
one-day century, caught on 99 against
India, though he went on to hit a further century in the
ICC Champions Trophy 2004 pool match against
Sri Lanka two weeks later. At the end of the season he was named as the inaugural winner of the
ICC Award for
one-day player of the year and the
Professional Cricketers' Association player of the year. He also became a father when his fiancée Rachael Wools gave birth on 6 September. They now have a second child who was born during the series in India in 2006. Flintoff briefly returned home from the tour to see his son for the first time.
2005: Ashes winner Following the Test series in
South Africa in December 2004 and January 2005, Flintoff flew home for surgery on his left ankle, leading to worries he might not regain fitness in time for
The Ashes. In fact, following a rehabilitation programme of swimming and hill-walking, he recovered ahead of schedule and was able to return to action for
Lancashire in April. In the Second Test against Australia at
Edgbaston in August 2005, he broke Ian Botham's 1981 record of six sixes in an Ashes Test Match with five in the first innings and a further four in the second innings; he scored 141 runs in total. In the same game he took a total of seven wickets (across both innings), including the wickets of
Langer and
Ponting in his first over in Australia's run-chase. He managed all this despite a shoulder injury early in the second innings. England won the game by just two runs and saved their hopes of regaining the Ashes. Flintoff was named 'Man of the Match' and captain
Michael Vaughan subsequently dubbed the match "Fred's Test" in honour of his achievement. Flintoff scored a century during England's crucial win at Trent Bridge. He took five wickets on the fourth day of the final Test match, enabling England to go off for bad light and helping them eventually to secure a draw and regain the Ashes. For his achievements throughout the
2005 Ashes series, he was named as "Man of the Series" by Australian coach,
John Buchanan. His achievement also won him the inaugural
Compton-Miller Medal. He was also awarded the
Freedom of the City of Preston. In October 2005, Flintoff shared the
Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the ICC player of the year award with
Jacques Kallis of South Africa. In December 2005, Flintoff was named
BBC Sports Personality of the Year for 2005, the first cricketer since Botham in 1981. In the New Year's Honours List for 2006, Flintoff was appointed an MBE for his role in the successful Ashes team. In January 2006, Flintoff was presented with the
Freedom of the City award for
Preston, Lancashire. The award was presented to Flintoff by the mayor of Preston. Other recipients of the award include Sir
Tom Finney and
Nick Park.
England captaincy In February 2006 following England captain
Michael Vaughan and vice-captain
Marcus Trescothick becoming unavailable for the first Test match against India, Flintoff was named captain of the England team and subsequently announced that he would be staying in India for the entire Test series, although he and his wife were expecting their second child. His wife gave birth to a son, Corey, shortly before the second Test on 9 March. On the field, Flintoff was seen as a great success during the drawn series with India, with a 212-run victory in
Mumbai. His contributions with both bat and ball ensured that he was named as the player of the series, with many commentators seeing Flintoff as someone who not only worked better under the responsibility but was also viewed as a great influence of an inexperienced team, which included many debutants, such as
Alastair Cook,
Owais Shah and
Monty Panesar. Flintoff amassed four fifties in the series and took 11 wickets, on unfriendly surfaces for seamers. Flintoff continued to captain England during the seven ODIs in India, although he was rested for two matches. Sri Lanka toured in May and England drew the
three-Test series 1–1. The series took a heavy toll on Flintoff physically as journalist David Hopps remarked: A recurrence of his long-term ankle problem in the Test series meant Flintoff missed both the ODI series against Sri Lanka and the first Test against Pakistan. It was later announced in July that Flintoff's rehabilitation had not been sufficient to quell the injury and that further surgery would be required. He was thus ruled out for the entire series against Pakistan. Despite injury concerns, Flintoff was later named for the
ICC Champions Trophy, where he played as a specialist batsman, not as an all-rounder.
2006–07 Ashes series After his previous stint as captain in the Test series against India, Flintoff returned as captain of the England team for the eagerly anticipated
2006–07 Ashes series in Australia. The series turned out to be a humiliating one for Flintoff, leading his team to five straight losses and thus losing the Ashes after having held them for the shortest time in history. In addition, he presided over England's worst ever defeat in an Ashes series, equalling the 1921 whitewash at the hands of the
Warwick Armstrong-led Australian team in the wake of World War I. series Flintoff's own play in the 2006–07 series, both bowling and at the crease, was generally deemed disappointing. He made only two scores over 50 in the series, his best bowling figures being 4–99 in the first innings of the First Test in Brisbane, and he failed to take five wickets in a match. Flintoff played in only one first-class game in the lead up to the series. He was initially undone by Australia's excellent seam bowling but his batting improved throughout the series as he got more match practice. A persistent ankle injury prevented Flintoff from bowling long spells at full pace and Australia's batsmen took advantage of this. According to Nasser Hussain during the tour he also had three or four warnings for inappropriate behaviour and binge drinking, including arriving hung over for a training session. Flintoff also captained England for several of the subsequent
2006–07 Commonwealth Bank Series One Day International matches. Michael Vaughan's return from knee surgery was cut short by a hamstring injury and he was only able to play two matches, leaving Flintoff in charge for the remaining games. England qualified in the last game of eight group matches for the best-of-three finals against Australia, but reversed their poor form on tour with a 2–0 series win in the finals. Flintoff contributed significantly with the ball in both matches, taking three wickets in the first match and allowing only 10 runs off five overs in the second as Australia chased a reduced total in a rain-hit match.
2007 Cricket World Cup With
Michael Vaughan returning from injury for the
Cricket World Cup in the
West Indies, Flintoff was replaced as captain but appointed
England's vice-captain. In the opening match of the tournament against
New Zealand, Flintoff was out first ball in England's innings and, although conceding only 17 runs in eight overs, he failed to take a wicket. He did, however, take a one-handed catch at slip to dismiss
Ross Taylor for a duck. On the evening of England's defeat Flintoff, along with some other players and coaches from the England squad, indulged in some late night drinking in a night club, only two days before their vital match against
Canada. In the early hours of the morning, he reportedly had to be rescued after falling off a
pedalo – this quickly became known in the media as the "Fredalo" incident. Flintoff and the others involved were reprimanded and fined, with Flintoff being stripped of the vice-captaincy. In addition, he was suspended for the match against Canada. It was revealed by England coach
Duncan Fletcher that Flintoff had had a number of previous warnings about his behaviour. Flintoff has since issued a public apology and later also clarified that he didn't actually "fall off" a pedalo but rather failed in an attempt to board one. Flintoff returned to the England team for the last group match against
Kenya, taking two wickets. In the Super 8 matches, Flintoff often excelled with the ball but failed to recover his batting form. Against Ireland he took 4–43 and scored 43 runs; against Sri Lanka he took 3–35 but was out for 2 and against Australia he took 1–35 but was out for 4. In the next match against Bangladesh Flintoff took 1–38 in eight overs and scored 23 runs off 21 balls. Ultimately, he failed to influence an ailing English team and had a poor tournament.
Michael Vaughan later commented that Flintoff's pedalo antics had adversely affected team morale.
2007–2009: Injuries, comeback and retirement Flintoff returned for a couple of games with Lancashire, in preparation for the
West Indies tour of England but he re-injured his ankle and was ruled out for the first Test which started on 17 May 2007. Having undergone another operation on the troublesome ankle, he missed the whole Test and one-day series against the West Indies, and he was also ruled out for the subsequent Test series with India. Following several games for Lancashire, Flintoff returned for England in the first of seven ODIs against India on 21 August 2007. He bowled seven overs and ended with figures of one for twelve in England's 104-run victory. He hit an eventful nine runs during the second ODI; however, while fielding, he injured his knee and sat out England's 42-run victory in the third ODI. He returned for the fourth ODI on 30 August. Flintoff missed England's two narrow defeats to India in the fifth and sixth ODIs before taking 3–45 in the seventh, helping England to win the series four-three with a seven-wicket victory. Flintoff's ankle injury recurred during the end of the 2007 season. Although he played in the
2007 ICC World Twenty20, he did not accompany the England squad to Sri Lanka, while a fourth operation made it highly unlikely that he would play again before the summer of 2008 and would miss both the Sri Lankan Test Series and the 2008 tour of New Zealand. Flintoff remained "upbeat" about his career, however. Flintoff was back in action for Lancashire early in the 2008 season, but a side strain ruled him out of contention for the home series against New Zealand. After again returning to action in county cricket he was recalled to the England squad for the second Test against South Africa, where he missed the last 17 Tests prior. He took his 200th Test wicket in the Third Test, trapping
Neil McKenzie lbw for 72. Flintoff bowled consistently against the South Africans, but South African coach
Mickey Arthur felt that he was too defensive. His batting also began to show promise as he consistently made starts, before being moved back up to bat at six when
Kevin Pietersen took over as captain. In the following one day series, Flintoff was an important player for England, leading Pietersen to describe him as "a superstar". Flintoff scored 78 in both the first and the third matches – he was not required to bat in the second – as well as 31 not out off 12 balls in the fourth, whilst taking three wickets in the same match. This led many pundits to speculate that Flintoff might just be back to his best. He won Man of the Series in the ODI home series against South Africa, where England won four-nil: the last match was washed out. He was both the top run-scorer and the top wicket-taker of that series. Still, though, his want of consistency frustrated the pundits. "Flintoff," wrote
Peter Roebuck some time later, "is a fine cricketer who has never quite worked out how he takes wickets or scores runs. Torn between hitting and playing, pounding and probing, he has performed below his highest capabilities." On England's tour of India, Flintoff started the series well. In the first warm-up match against the Mumbai Cricket Association, he scored exactly 100. It was his first century for England since the Fourth Test of the
2005 Ashes. His batting did not follow with similar successes in India and the West Indies, but his bowling remained strong, with a dozen wickets in the Caribbean at under 30 apiece, followed by a
hat-trick in the final ODI series, becoming only the third English bowler ever to do so. In February 2009, the
Chennai Super Kings of the
Indian Premier League bought Flintoff for US$1,550,000; US$600,000 above his base price of US$950,000. This made him the highest-ever-paid IPL player at the time, alongside compatriot
Kevin Pietersen, surpassing
Mahendra Singh Dhoni's US$1,500,000. But Flintoff did not find success at the tournament, held in South Africa due to the
Indian General Elections, as after a difficult first few matches he was sent home for surgery following another knee injury. during the first Ashes Test of the 2009 series as Flintoff comes to the wicket for his penultimate Test innings However, speculation over Flintoff's form ahead of the much-awaited 2009 Ashes series died down as he took six wickets in his first match back for Lancashire and left "several county batsmen...nursing bruised ribs and fingers". He also collected a half-century against Hampshire, although he was still yet to register a century in either domestic cricket or any form of the international game since that
Trent Bridge instalment of the last home Ashes in 2005, which year also accounted for his most recent Test five-for. "It's always been an Australian trait to over-rate players who have done well against them (just ask
VVS Laxman)," wrote
Lawrence Booth. "But in the case of Andrew Flintoff, this phenomenon is getting so out of control you wonder whether
Steve Waugh has returned to orchestrate a cunning mind-game. ... In any case, does anyone honestly think a player with his fitness record will make it through a five-Test series condensed into less than seven weeks?" Flintoff did offer some hope with the willow in the
Twenty20 Cup, however, hitting 93 off 41 balls for Lancashire against Derbyshire in June. He said that "Since 2005 I have just been plagued with injury so I've got the opportunity now to finish on a high by helping England to win the Ashes and it will give me great pleasure if I can play my last Test at the Oval and we can win the Ashes – it doesn't get any bigger than that." He was man of the match in England's victory at Lords in the Second Test Match, taking 5 wickets in the second innings after a fine display of fast bowling and achieving the rare feat of making both Lord's Honours Boards. On 23 August 2009, England defeated Australia at The Oval to seal a 2–1 series win, with Flintoff notably running out the Australian captain
Ricky Ponting, ensuring Flintoff ended his England career on a high. On 16 September 2010, Flintoff retired from all forms of professional cricket, having consulted medical advisers.
2014–2015: Twenty20 comeback and second retirement Flintoff came out of retirement in May 2014, returning to Lancashire to play
Twenty20 only. He featured in the final of the competition, dismissing
Ian Bell with the ball and hitting two sixes in the penultimate over as Lancashire fell just short against
Birmingham Bears. After this season he was signed by the
Brisbane Heat in the Australian
Big Bash League for the 2014–15 season. Flintoff disappointed on the field, ending the season, which proved to be his last as a player, with a high score of 46, with only one other score in double figures (15), along with three wickets at an average of 45.33.
2024–present: Coaching In September 2024, Flintoff was announced as the new head coach of the
England Lions cricket team for upcoming tours to South Africa, Australia and home matches against
India A cricket team and Zimbabwe. He was appointed as Head Coach of Northern Superchargers men's team in The Hundred in 2023. He left the role in October 2025, citing issues with the salary he was offered. ==Records and achievements==