Flintoff ruled out of second Test

Andrew Flintoff has been ruled out of next week's second Test against Zimbabwe at Chester-le-Street, after failing to recover from a freak shoulder injury.

Flintoff suffered a trapped nerve after being struck by a beamer in the Lancashire nets last week. It was feared the problem would be enough to keep him out of international action until the start of the NatWest series next month, although he was able to play a part with the bat in Lancashire's victory against Durham in the C&G Trophy on Wednesday.

But Flintoff is not going to be rushed back into action. "I surprised myself by playing at Durham yesterday," he said. "I had treatment at Lord's last week and there were signs of improvement. But I still can't bowl and I also managed to get away without having to throw, which was a bonus.

Instead of heading back to the Riverside, Flintoff will travel south to play against Kent in the Championship, before taking on Leicestershire in Liverpool on June 4.

Matthew Hoggard is also likely to miss the second Test. He is rated extremely doubtful after damaging the cartilage in his right knee during Yorkshire's C&G Trophy defeat against Worcestershire.

"The position is that the knee is sore," Hoggard told the Press Association. "I jarred it. I tried to carry on initially but I couldn't run it off and this has been a very frustrating year for me so far. I had a dodgy winter, bowled reasonably well against Derbyshire, got injured against Northants. I came back from my stomach injury and the first time I went jogging I twisted my ankle.

"Everything is coming in threes and fours for me in terms of injuries. Things are getting on top of me at the moment. I just hope I can get over this knee thing as quickly as possible and get back to playing some cricket."