Freddie Flintoff is England's very secret weapon at this T20 World Cup

One of the most interesting developments in England's white-ball team in recent months has been the arrival of Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff to the backroom team.

The 46-year-old had been away from professional cricket for several years and made a name for himself as a presenter and television personality.

Easily the most recognizable cricketer of the last 25 years thanks to his exploits in the 2005 Ashes – the last home Test series shown on free-to-air television in the UK – Flintoff has enjoyed great success in his second career.

However, this was brought to a grinding halt in December 2022 when he had a horrific accident while filming for Higher speed at Dunsfold Airfield in Surrey.

Flipping over an open-top sports car at 130 mph, the accident could have ended his life. Yet after months of painstaking recovery and rehabilitation, he returned to the public fold late last summer when he was spotted in the outfield ahead of an England ODI against New Zealand in Cardiff.

Still sporting visible scars from his brush with death, Flintoff, known as Fred to his teammates, was offered a return to cricket by Rob Key, his close friend and director of England cricket, who persuaded me to accept an unpaid consultancy role during this period. series. There was no official announcement and his role was only revealed when he was spotted on the pitch in Cardiff.

He was not part of the coaching team for the subsequent 50-over World Cup in India, but after spending part of the winter working with England's white-ball team while touring the West Indies and as a mentor with the under-50 team. Under-19 and Lions teams, he is back in the West Indies for this T20 World Cup as a paid consultant.

Reluctant to speak publicly on this tour, and with most of his close cricket friends reluctant to talk about his latest career move, there is a strange dynamic at play where the most high-profile cricketer of the latest quarter century is almost England. secret weapon in this tournament, such is its lack of visibility.

One person who gave some insight into Flintoff's role within the team was fast bowler Mark Wood, who spoke at the England team hotel in Barbados the morning after the frustrating opening match of the tournament spoiled by rain against Scotland on Tuesday. “He’s fantastic,” Wood said. “He has a real aura, in the way he speaks. He approaches people individually, puts them aside and keeps things very simple.

“He mentioned to me that he didn’t have a slower ball. And I thought I very rarely played slower balls. He told me he had three balls – a bouncer, a quick yorker and a hard length. He was telling me about it and he makes it incredibly simple for us. He's great to have in the group, he's easy to talk to and he carries that natural aura.

Such is the impression Flintoff has made since his re-introduction to cricket last autumn that he landed the job as head coach of the Northern Superchargers in this year's Hundred. He is the only English coach taking part in this summer's tournament. And like many of his other friends, Marcus North, the former Australian batter who runs Superchargers' cricket, didn't want to talk about Flintoff when contacted by I as this tournament approaches.

Yet Key was not afraid to extol the virtues of his old friend, perhaps even going too far when he predicted that Flintoff could be England's future head coach, during a speech in March.

“Without a doubt, he would be a great head coach,” Key said. “Who knows where he will end up in the future.” He will be a worthy candidate in the future. When that time comes and whoever fills that position, and it might be outside of my time, it would be foolish not to look at it.

“He helped us enormously. Just having someone who knows what it's like to struggle and come out of it is so relatable to these players. He has great emotional intelligence, so he understands when you need a little arm around your shoulder or some direct honesty. These are the skills that make a great leader.

“Leadership is about making the people around you feel better and this is someone who is like that. He has a lot to offer.

These heartfelt words certainly came from a good place. Still, they threatened to create a rather strange dynamic between Flintoff and current white-ball head coach Matthew Mott at this tournament.

Still, the fact that Flintoff is involved in cricket – and in England – is great news for the sport, for him and, as Wood said, for the players too.