Fit-again Flintoff heads back to Australia

The news that Andrew Flintoff is to fly out to Australia tomorrow after passing a fitness test on his injured groin will come as a welcome relief to the England one-day squad.

The Lancashire all-rounder was flown home in early December, midway through the Ashes series, after taking longer than expected to recover from a double hernia operation at the end of last season.

The 25-year-old was given the all-clear after an intensive bowling work-out in Manchester this morning under the supervision of the ECB's Chief Medical Officer, Dr Peter Gregory.

Chairman of Selectors, David Graveney said: "Andrew has worked extremely hard at his rehabilitation over the past six weeks and has undergone a rigorous fitness test designed to simulate the type of pressures he would face in a real match.

Whether Flintoff will be able to take part in England's next VB Series game, which is against Sri Lanka at Adelaide on Friday, is less certain, although England would dearly love to restore him to a middle order which has shown fragility in the last two games, both of which they have lost.

"He will need time to acclimatise and get used to bowling outdoors again when he arrives in Australia," Graveney added. "But once that process is complete, we anticipate that he will be available for selection immediately."