Flintoff to quit Tests after Ashes by CricketArchive Staff Reporter

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Player:	A Flintoff
Event:	Australia in British Isles 2009

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DateLine: 15th July 2009

 

Andrew Flintoff will retire from Test cricket at the end of the ongoing Ashes series against Australia, the injury-prone all-rounder announced on Wednesday.

 

The 31-year-old, who has so far played 75 Tests for his country since his debut in 1998, will though continue to make himself available for selection for One-Day Internationals and International Twenty20 fixtures, a statement issued by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said.

 

Flintoff was the star of England's 2005 Test series win over Australia as the team regained the Ashes for the first time in 18 years. But injuries have blighted his career and he now has to overcome a knee problem, sustained in last week's drawn first Test against Australia, if he is to play in the second match of the current Ashes series starting at Lord's on Thursday.

 

"My body has told me it's time to stop," Flintoff said in an ECB statement.

 

"Since 2005 I've had two years when I've done nothing but rehab from one injury or another.

 

"It's been something I've been thinking about for a while and I think this last problem I've had with my knee has confirmed to me that the time is now right."