Flintoff Discusses Final Ashes Match And Online Betting Odds
19th August, 2009
England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, says there is plenty to be done before his planned retirement from test cricket after the deciding fifth and final Ashes test match of the summer, which starts on Thursday at the Oval.
Currently the series is tied at 1-1 however; England needs to win in order to regain the famous Ashes urn from their bitter Australian rivals.
During this series so far, Flintoff has only shown glimpses of the brilliance he produced in England’s unforgettable 2005 Ashes series win. Flintoff missed the innings-and-80-run defeat in the fourth test at Headingley, due to the persistent knee injury which has forced his retirement from international test match cricket.
Freddie Flintoff believes that his body will permit him to have one last encounter with Ricky Ponting’s troops and is relishing the challenge.
The man from Lancashire told BBC Sport, "I've been working with (physio) Dave Roberts, had some batting over the weekend, and bowled on Tuesday. I'm confident I'll come through," he also added "I'm probably in a better state than I was going into the third Test at Edgbaston. I think I'm more or less there, I just have to prove it."
England has to bounce back quickly from the crushing defeat in the last match for the winner takes all decider, in South London. Flintoff commented on how the last match was a bitter pill to swallow, but confidence in the camp is still high after the week off in between test matches.
Flintoff also discussed that if the team could capture victory it would mean more than the last Ashes series win in 2005. Since that time, England has gone through various changes and challenges and Flintoff told the BBC that, "The side have gone through a lot on and off field over the last 12 months. With a lot of youngsters who've not played in Ashes before and with the things I've gone through from 2005, from a team and a personal point of view, it'd be a greater achievement."
To win the deciding fifth Ashes test match England are 4/1 with Bet 365 and 7/2 with Bluesq. Australia is 5/4 with Bet Fred and 11/10 with betinternet. A draw is 5/4 with Paddy Power and 13/10 with betfair.
By Dane
