Former England captain Michael Atherton fears history is in danger of repeating itself after Andrew Flintoff was ruled out for 12 weeks on Saturday with a recurring ankle problem.
The hero of England's Ashes-winning triumph last year is due to have surgery on his left ankle next week after an attempt at a comeback ended with him leaving the field after bowling just two overs against Kent on Friday.
England had hoped rest and rehabilitation would be the answer to a problem that had its origins in bone fragments left in Flintoff's left ankle from an operation at the beginning of last year.
But the man the selectors want to captain the team in Australia now faces a spell on the sidelines which could leave him desperately short of match practice before November's first Ashes Test in Brisbane.
For Atherton, a former Lancashire team mate of Flintoff, the situation has worrying echoes of England's last tour of Australia in 2002/2003.
Back then England arrived with several players -- including Flintoff, Darren Gough, Simon Jones and Marcus Trescothick -- who were not fully fit.
Australia went on to retain the Ashes in a mere 11 days' playing time and won the series 4-1.
"It was a shambolic start to England's last Ashes tour and, on the back of that, the selectors were very clear when they said, `We will not do this again, we will not take players who are not fully match fit,'" Atherton told Sky Sports.
"But they are going to be faced with this situation with Andrew Flintoff, that here's a guy who's played minimal cricket for the best part of eight or nine months, but a guy they want to captain out there [Australia]," he said.
"It's going to be an interesting question because he's going to be getting on that plane without any knowledge really that he's fully match fit," Atherton said.
"Going back to what happened four years ago that is exactly the situation the selectors were keen to avoid again," he said.
EVERY DAY A VICTORY: Players on the women’s team faced pressure from society just getting out onto the field as they prepare for their first Women’s Asian Cup game today Bangladesh’s national soccer team face daunting odds at their first-ever Women’s Asian Cup, but have already scored a major victory by qualifying. In the South Asian nation of 170 million, social stigma, family expectations, poverty and religious hardliners have long relegated women and girls to sports sidelines. The first women’s soccer league matches took place in 2011 and the squad, known to fans as the Red and Green, have kept pressing forward despite deeply embedded prejudices. “Many more girls would have joined us if the community had been even slightly supportive,” captain Afeida Khandaker told AFP ahead of her side’s March 3
US national team star Folarin Balogun was among the scorers as AS Monaco on Friday won 3-1 at Paris Saint-Germain, dealing a blow to the side from the French capital before they face Chelsea in a crunch UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie. Maghnes Akliouche gave Monaco a first-half lead at the Parc des Princes, and Aleksandr Golovin doubled their advantage early in the second half of the French Ligue 1 clash. Bradley Barcola pulled one back for the reigning European champions, but Balogun struck shortly after with a fifth goal in his last five games as Monaco claimed a precious
Liverpool on Tuesday suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers as Andre’s stoppage-time strike sealed a dramatic victory for the English Premier League’s bottom club. Arne Slot’s side fell behind to Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the closing stages at Molineux. Mohamed Salah hauled Liverpool level with his first goal in 11 top-flight games dating back to November last year. However, Andre’s first goal for Wolves inflicted the latest humbling loss in a chastening season for Liverpool. It was the first time the Premier League’s bottom club had beaten the reigning champions since Crystal Palace defeated Chelsea in 2017. Liverpool
TOUGH RIVALS: Taiwanese goalkeeper Wang Yu-ting produced a superb performance as Japan attempted 30 shots and enjoyed almost 90 percent of possession Bayern Munich midfielder Momoko Tanikawa yesterday finally cracked a dogged Taiwan as powerhouse Japan won their AFC Women’s Asian Cup match in Perth, Australia, 2-0. Brimming with a talented squad featuring 16 England-based players, Japan dominated a one-sided match played in fierce heat, but they were left frustrated by an inability to hit the target other than Tanikawa’s strike in the 61st minute and a header from substitute Kiko Seike in the 92nd minute. The highest-ranked team in the competition at eight, Japan are desperate for a third title to add to their back-to-back triumphs in 2014 and 2018, but
RSS