Flintoff retires from all forms of cricket

LONDON - Former England captain Andrew Flintoff has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket with immediate effect after being told his recovery from the major surgery he had after the 2009 Ashes series would not be sufficient for a comeback.

Flintoff has undergone surgery twice on his troublesome knee. His last match was a Test against Australia at The Oval in August 2009, when England won to regain the Ashes.

“It is with both disappointment and sadness that I am today announcing my retirement from all forms of cricket,” Flintoff was quoted as saying in The Daily Telegraph.

“The decision to end my career came yesterday after consultation with medical advisers. I was told that the problems I have been trying to overcome in re-hab for the last year following the latest in a series of operations would not recover sufficiently to allow a comeback.

“Having been told that my body would no longer stand up to the rigours of cricket, I had no alternative but to retire.

“I would like to thank my family, Lancashire Cricket Club, England, all my sponsors, friends and advisers for all the help and support they have given me throughout my career.

“Last, but by no means least, I am indebted to the encouragement and support I have always received from England’s magnificent supporters. I will now be taking a break before deciding which future direction to take,” he said.

He had hoped to be fit for the start of this season but suffered another setback earlier this year and underwent further surgery.

Flintoff has spent the past year mostly living in Dubai working on his rehabilitation.

The injury prevented him from fulfilling a $1.5 million contract to play for the Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League and he was negotiating a deal with South Australia to play in their domestic Twenty20 competition this winter.

He took 226 wickets and scored 3,845 runs in an 11-year Test career.