Updated on
Summary
Andy Flower, Englands coach, is optimistic that Andrew Flintoff will be fit to play in the second Test at Lords, starting on Thursday, despite reporting soreness and swelling in his right knee after falling awkwardly in the field during last weeks first Test in Cardiff. Despite finishing with disappointing figures of 1 for 128 in 35 overs, Flintoff bowled with pace and hostility in his first Test outing of the summer in Cardiff, and with his batting showing signs of returning consistency, England still retain the hope that he might yet rediscover the form that made him such an irresistible force in the 2005 Ashes. In the meantime, Flintoff could either be replaced by, or joined in the same line-up as, Steve Harmison, who was understood to have frustrated the England management with his poor fitness and attitude on their recent tour of the Caribbean. His form this summer brooks no equivocation, with six wickets in a fiery performance for England Lions against Australia at Worcester earlier this month, and a five-wicket haul for Durham in his most recent Championship outing against Yorkshire.
