The 31 year old came into the England team as a precocious teenager against South Africa in 1998 but was hopelessly outclassed. Like nearly everyone has since Ian Botham retired, he struggled with the tag of "the new Botham" and was in and out of the England team for several years. His reputation for living life to the full off the pitch as well as troubles with his own weight and fitness left him open to widespread criticism from the press and within the cricket world. However, he finally established himself under the management of Duncan Fletcher and the captaincy of Michael Vaughan, averaging 52 with the bat including a dramatic 142 at Lords against South Africa in 2003. He followed that up with fine performances the following summer but that would be only a prelude to the Ashes series of 2005. In a series acclaimed by many as the greatest of all time, Flintoff dominated the stage, inspiring England to a first win against Australia since 1986/87.
His stats for the series – 24 wickets and over 400 runs – were excellent but they told only half the story. Every time he took the ball in his hand he made something happen. His over at Edgbaston when he took the wickets of Justin Langer and Ricky Ponting was described by Mark Nicholas commentating as "the over of the series", he followed that with a 102 in the 4th Test that Wisden described as " a century of murderous purpose." At the end of that historic series it seemed the world was his oyster and only greatness awaited. Ultimately the fates would conspire against him.
Just as the England management a generation earlier had mistaken a great player for a great captain in Ian Botham, Duncan Fletcher and co did the same with Flintoff. When Michael Vaughan was injured before the next summer, Flintoff was named as captain. He led England for three test against Sri Lanka only for he himself to go down with injury. Andrew Strauss promptly stepped in and led England to a series win over Pakistan. England were to travel to Australia to defend the Ashes the following winter and with Flintoff feeling his way back to full fitness, Strauss seemed the obvious choice to continue as captain. Instead they picked Flintoff to lead the party.
Targeted relentlessly by the Australians, Flintoff could only watch as an outclassed England were whitewashed to the delight of the natives. He would never reclaim the greatness that briefly shone on him in 2005. Since that summer he has missed more tests than he has played and whispers had begun that perhaps England were a better team without him and maybe the test team could not continue to wait for him as he recovered from his latest ailment.
The latest knee problem seems to have been the straw that broke the camel's back. He informed the players on Monday of his intentions and as rumours started to fill the air he formally made his announcement though the Press Association and followed that with a press conference at Lords.
The timing of the announcement does put the selectors in a bit of a spot. What if his form does not merit a place in the last test? Will they drop him as they would with other players or will they allow him to say good bye to his adoring fans publicly? In any case it may not matter. "Fred" will continue to play one day and Twenty20 cricket which his bank manager will be very pleased to hear. Like Darren Gough before him, he seems destined to see out his days on the international 20 overs circuit and playing for England in the shorter forms if he is selected.
After 2005 Wisden described Andrew Flintoff as having made the "quantum, the Beamon leap, from excellence to greatness". Ultimately it would be just a fleeting moment before his own body would pull him back to ranks of the merely mortal. He was a very fine test cricketer, but not a great one. If he had been blessed with a more rugged frame he may have made that quantum leap a permanent one, but maybe a fleeting moment was enough.
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