“He said to me that I wasn’t getting the ball out of his hand until he had all the wickets, Freddie was right in the zone. He’s got a great heart and that’s what gets him over the line. He was like a bull chasing a red rag, He was dying to get out there and play, We’ll see how they react over the next three days but we’re hopeful we’ll have a fit team for the next Test.” England captain Andrew Strauss hailed Andrew Flintoff’s inspirational display.
“It’s right up there with anything, It’s always a privilege to play at Lord’s and to get my name on the board is really special. It’s been a great Test match for the team. Everybody in the side has contributed. It’s nice to get five wickets but it’s been a hard battle over five days. Everybody can be proud. It’s not ideal, But I had four Tests and now it’s one down, three to go. I have played for most of my career with a bit of pain. I’ll be fine. There is so much at stake and there’s always that adrenaline to take the pain away. I bowled a lot of overs and my pace has been up. I’ve felt good apart from a few twinges and they went away so that’s an encouraging thing. When you get injured, come back from an operation and do rehab it can be testing at times. Putting on an England shirt again is at the forefront of your mind and playing against Australia winning a Test match is one of the things that keeps you going. It’s something I never really got an opportunity to do before but now a role I feel a lot more comfortable in. When I was younger with the new ball I got caught in two minds – whether I should be swinging the ball or just putting it there. Now I just try to hold it seam up and whang it – it seems to be working.” said Freddie Flintoff .