Vaughan tips Flintoff to hit back in style (From The Northern Echo)

Vaughan tips Flintoff to hit back in style

9:24am Wednesday 8th July 2009 in

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MICHAEL Vaughan believes Andrew Flintoff’s latest brush with the England hierarchy could provide the spur for him to repeat his heroics of 2005 in this summer’s Ashes series.

Former England captain Vaughan, who led England to their stunning Ashes success four years ago, enjoyed the best of Flintoff during that golden summer when the Lancashire all-rounder won the man-of-the-series award for his performances in helping to beat Australia for the first time since 1986-7.

Injuries have since undermined Flintoff’s efforts to repeat that level of performance while he has had several brushes with authority, most recently on England’s trip to Belgium when he missed the team bus for a visit to First World War sites.

Flintoff was disciplined for that incident and apologised to the team, but far from causing a distraction Vaughan believes it may even have helped England focus in their buildup to today’s opening Test in Cardiff.

‘‘In a funny kind of way, what happened last week would have been a positive thing for him and the team,’’ said Vaughan.

‘‘Freddie is very motivated and I’m really looking forward to him emulating what he achieved in 2005. He hasn’t played that much cricket of late but of the cricket I’ve seen he’s definitely bowling with that intensity and that pace and he’s going to be a real threat.

‘‘I just want to see him get five-fors, I want to see him really rip through the Australians and get big wicket hauls and if he does that his batting will look after itself because he will be going into bat with a lot of confidence.’’ Vaughan intends to watch the opening two days of the first Test from a box at Sophia Gardens and insists being a spectator will come easy to him only a week after announcing his retirement from cricket.

He is yet to accept any offers from broadcasting companies to share his expertise from the commentary box, and believes he will enjoy the experience of watching as a supporter rather than being one of the central characters.

‘‘I think this is going to be the easy one (to watch),’’ he said. ‘‘The last one was the most difficult because I’d missed it with injury and I’d had nine months previously in the gym and tried my hardest to get fit and it didn’t come off.

‘‘This is probably the first Ashes series for four that I will be able to sit back and enjoy because the other two I either played in or I was injured for, so there’s no real pressure on me at all.’’ Unlike the 2005 England vintage, Strauss’ side approach this summer’s series as marginal favourites and Vaughan is confident they can match the achievement of four years previously and regain the Ashes.

‘‘Winning the Ashes is almost like winning a major in golf, it’s the pinnacle of being an England cricket captain,’’ enthused Vaughan.

‘‘We all want to beat every team we come across but when the Ashes arrives it’s so much more exposed and wherever you go in the country people are talking about it, all the radio stations are building it up and it does take it on to the next level.

‘‘As a captain you always get remembered for what you do against Australia and that’s just the way it is. I’m hoping Straussy has a great time and the team play very well because I do think we’ve got a great chance of beating Australia.’’ He added: ‘‘We’ll have to have that rub of the green, we’ll have to have luck with injuries and we’ll have to play consistently well.

‘‘We also need to take on the pressure moments like we did in 2005 and if all those things happen, Straussy could be a very lucky man.’’

■ Michael Vaughan was speaking at the launch of Virgin Media’s ‘fifty50’ charity initiative.

The company has pledged to donate £1,000 to charity for every England batsman who scores a half-century during the Ashes to celebrate the national roll-out of the broadband provider’s ultrafast 50Mb broadband service.