Flintoff to make Lancashire comeback

Andrew Flintoff has been officially ruled out of England's two-Test series against Bangladesh in May and June, but could yet make his competitive comeback for Lancashire in their opening championship fixture against Somerset next month, as he continues his rehabilitation from ankle surgery.

Flintoff, one of the bowling stars of England's Test-series win over South Africa, flew home ahead of their 4-1 defeat in the subsequent one-day series, to have a spur on his troublesome left ankle removed. The operation was timed so as to allow Flintoff the maximum time to recover ahead of the Ashes series in July, and such was his commitment to England's cause that he was prepared to forego his honeymoon, after getting married to his fiancée Rachel Wools earlier this month.

A Flintoff appearance at county level is a rare event these days - in the past three seasons, he has featured in just six Championship matches, 11 one-day matches and three Twenty20 games - but this time he has been given clearance by the England & Wales Cricket Board to complete his rehabilitation away from the international spotlight. "The plan is that Freddie will start off playing just as a batsman and then gradually build up to bowling a few overs," Mike Watkinson, Lancashire's director of cricket, told The Daily Telegraph. "When he bowls and how much will be up to him and how he feels."

The last time Flintoff played in a Championship match for Lancashire was in the early stages of the 2003 season, when he was ruled out of the Zimbabwe series after being pinned on the shoulder by a Sajid Mahmood beamer. The sojourn worked wonders for both club and country - he averaged 103 with the bat for Lancashire in five matches, before returning at full throttle to take the Man of the Series award for England against South Africa.