Thaindian News

London, Feb 24 (IANS) England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff is confident that he will be fit for the second edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) that begins in April.
Flintoff has been ruled out of the fourth Test against West Indies which starts Thursday after he strained a muscle in his right hip.

But the all-rounder has ruled out that he would be forced to sacrifice his place in the IPL in order to ensure he is fit for this summer’s Ashes series against Australia.

Flintoff’s ability to recover in time for the fifth Test and the one-day series that follows has also been called into question. The IPL starts April 10, when Flintoff hopes to join up with the Chennai Super Kings franchise, which bought him for $1.55 million.

David Collier, the chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), earlier hinted that Flintoff could be prevented from participating in the lucrative IPL Twenty20 tournament if it is felt it could hamper his chances of playing in the Ashes.

However, the Lancashire all-rounder is confident he will recover in time to play.

“I don’t think it will be touch and go,” Flintoff was quoted as saying in the Guardian. “The IPL’s still a while away, so for all intents and purposes I’ll be fit for that.”

“I’m intending to go but it’s not really at the forefront of my thinking - I want to play Test cricket and I want to play the one-day internationals.”

Flintoff insists it is in England’s interests for their players to take part in the IPL, with the ICC World Twenty20 to take place on home soil this summer. ” Playing in as much Twenty20 cricket before going into the World Cup will obviously benefit the side,” he said.

“You see how the Indians have gone - it’s had a knock-on effect in one-day internationals. Obviously, financially it’s great. But to further our game and get better in that form of the game, it’s important we go.”