Knock on wood
Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff talks candidly about his life in the spotlight, the challenges that lie ahead for the England cricket team in the Caribbean and how much he enjoys spending time with his young daughters
Interview: Alistair Duncan
Northern boy and world-famous cricketer Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff might be in demand on the pitch, but he still buys clothes from ASDA, chills out to Frank Sinatra on his iPod and is happiest when spending time with his daughters
ANDREW “FREDDIE” FLINTOFF seems every bit the Lancastrian. Straight-talking and pretension-free, he’s a man’s man, guarded to the point of gruffness, and at 6ft 5in, a towering wall of cricketing muscle. But get him talking about his family and that northern taciturnity slips away like a ball knocked for six.
Flintoff is worshipped in the north. It’s pretty clear that it’s also where his heart belongs. So why on earth is the golden boy of English cricket telling me that he’s just moved to London?
“Well, it’s better than a hotel room,” he explains quietly in a low-pitched Lancashire burr. “The missus and I have been spending so much time in the capital and, with two small children, it’s best that we have a proper place. Rachel [his wife] found a flat in west London that she liked so we went ahead and bought it.” More sensible, no doubt, than forking out for expensive hotel rooms every time he’s required to play at Lord’s or to do the London-based sponsorship work that last year allegedly earned the fast bowler and batsman £3m. But he can’t seriously prefer London to up north?
“No, I don’t. And I’ve still got my home in Cheshire. I enjoy coming to London, because I don’t get recognised as much, but I’m happiest up north.”
It’s hard to believe that Flintoff doesn’t get noticed all the time (he admits that he “has begun to get spotted quite a bit”). After all, even though the boyish-looking sportsman is only 29, he’s already a world-famous cricketer and a national sporting icon.
FLINTOFF WAS BOWLED into the national psyche in the summer of 2005. Along with Simon Jones, Steve Harmison and Kevin Pietersen, Flintoff became a household name when he snatched back the Ashes from the Australians, the first time England had done so in 18 years.
It was a great summer not just for Flintoff and the team but for cricket in general, with a surge of interest in the country’s second national sport. Thousands of fans flocked to Trafalgar Square to pay homage to their heroes in a rare scene of sporting jubilation for Britain. Along with the vast crowds that had gathered, the sea of flying flags and the deafening cheers for the team, it’s hard to forget the memory of the cricketers still suffering from the aftermath of what must have been the mother of all drinking sessions. Flintoff was – by a long shot – the most bleary-eyed of the lot. So how much of that day and popping in to Number 10 Downing Street for an aspirin does he actually remember?
“I remember everything, to be honest with you,” he retorts. “It was an unbelievable day. Not just going to Number 10 but doing the open-top bus ride as well. You think there’ll just be 10 people waving flags but then to see the streets lined with people and Trafalgar Square packed made it a special day – something I thought that I’d never experience. You hope that you get a chance but to actually be there was magic.”
The journey began when he was born in Preston on 6 December 1977. Although at school he barely played cricket, he learned the game from his father, Colin, and brother Chris, who were both mad about the sport that is so integral to Lancashire life. Flintoff joined a local cricket team and quickly showed promise as a bowler and batsman, with an aggressive batting style that notched up runs at a rapid rate. Lancashire signed him but initially there were jittery moments. Most significantly, Flintoff often dropped catches in slip position in spite of those enormous ham-like hands of his.
His weight was another problem. At one stage he ballooned to 19 stone, partly through a lack of commitment to a fitness regime and partly on account of his drinking. It was during this period that he was christened with the “Freddie” nickname after the Hanna-Barbera cartoon character Fred Flintstone. There was no denying that he was every bit as portly as his cartoon namesake.
In spite of this, he still could deliver results on the pitch. He hit 135 not out in the NatWest Trophy in 2000, a display described by David Gower as “the most awesome innings ever”. Later that year, in the face of ongoing criticism about his weight, he scored 42 not out against Zimbabwe and was awarded Man of the Match. “Not bad for a fat lad,” he quipped as he was handed the award.
By 2003, he was fit and on form. Having scored his maiden Test century the previous year, he went on to score a century and three 50s in the Test series against South Africa. In 2004, he continued to excel on the West Indies tour, ending the year by being crowned Wisden Cricketer of the Year.
The following summer, it was time for the Ashes. In that balmy summer of English cricketing glory, Flintoff was widely acknowledged as a pivotal figure in the resulting victory. He went on to collect one of the most prestigious accolades in the sporting world, the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.
Flintoff was made captain of the England cricket team in February 2006, a decision that surprised a few, not least because there had been an assumption that Andrew Strauss was lined up for the job. His first real challenge as England skipper was a Herculean one. He was charged with leading the England team out to Australia to retain the Ashes.
In the end, it was a dismally poor result. The Aussies won 5-0 – the first time England had conceded an Ashes whitewash since 1921. Naturally, questions were asked about selectors’ choice of Flintoff as captain, but David Graveney, chairman of the England Test selectors, defended their decision immediately after the defeat, saying: “I take my hat off to him [Flintoff] because it was a very difficult job to do and he has done it as well as he possibly could. We’ve made a lot of errors, but the appointment of the captain is not one of them.”
One thing that has always followed Flintoff is a comparison with Ian Botham but he is dubious about being compared with the best all-rounder in recent memory. “I don’t think there are any similarities,” he states firmly. “We both play cricket – is that it? For any young all-rounder coming into the England side, there are going to be comparisons. I’d love to emulate what he did in the game but I’ve got to do it as me. I’d like to score the runs he got, though.”
What about life outside cricket? What else inspires Freddie Flintoff? “Music plays a big part in my life,” he says. “I listen to it in the car. In the dressing rooms there’s always background music playing. It can keep the spirits up. Music can definitely affect mood and atmosphere. That’s something I try to use to my advantage.”
His iPod is a faithful companion and he downloads feverishly from the internet (“I can’t remember the last CD I bought”), but it’s not cutting-edge bands or hip-hop that he likes. “Elvis is my hero,” he confesses. “I also like Rod Stewart and Johnny Cash. And I’m the biggest Sinatra fan.”
His love of the old greats has even extended to him collecting music memorabilia. “I’ve got a couple of signed Elvis albums and some signed Sinatra albums. It’s not like I’ve got hundreds of sports cars. It’s probably my one extravagance. Well, apart from my flat in London.”
ALSO UNLIKE OTHER young sports stars at the top of their earning power, he’s frugal when it comes to clothes. “I got some nice pastel jumpers from George at ASDA,” he says loyally, given that he has fronted the ASDA advertising campaign recently. “I’m not really into designer labels and spending £500 on a pair of jeans.” He does, however, take pleasure in buying suits. “But I wait for the sales.”
Off the pitch, there’s not a lot that occupies Flintoff’s spare time (possibly the odd pint here and there – but a “nice pint in a pub somewhere, not a Cosmopolitan cocktail in a fancy bar”). However, spending time with his young daughters is treasured.
“I love doing things with Holly and Corey. Now we’ve got a flat in London, we’ve been exploring the city together. I took them to this fantastic place the other day called the Rainforest Café. It’s decked out just like a rainforest with trees and animals everywhere. My girls just loved it.”
He’s now about to enter the jungle that is the cricket World Cup. Does he fear a repeat of the obsession with WAGs that dominated the tabloid press in the last football World Cup? “I can’t control it and neither can the missus,” he concedes. “Ideally it won’t come to getting snapped having a coffee.”
There’s only one question that remains – how does it actually feel to play for England? Flintoff reverts to his typical, taciturn self. “Yeah, things are going all right,” is all he offers. But look closer and the Cheshire cat grin on his wide, stubbly face and the cheeky glint in those azure eyes tell the real story. He’s got pride in spades, he is at the top of his game and getting stumped isn’t part of his plan.
The cricket World Cup takes place in Antigua and Barbados on 11 March – 28 April. While in the West Indies, the England Cricket Team will be using Vodafone’s Travellers Toolkit to gain easy access to essential travel information via their mobile phone. For more information, visit www.vodafone.co.uk/travel
