Injured KP says he is not in Ashes doubt

October 5th, 2009 LONDON - England all rounder Andrew Flintoff has admitted that he is just one injury away from calling quits from cricket. Injured Flintoff is spending the next three months in Dubai to facilitate his recovery from a right knee operation and make a return to England's one-day team.

August 25th, 2009 LONDON - England cricketer Graeme Swann, who took the last Australian wicket to clinch the Ashes, has said that he has never experienced anything like the surge of emotion and happiness he felt after winning the Ashes. Swann said that he would cherish the day and the experience for rest of his life, as he has seen all the phases in his career and the experience on the final day at The Oval beats it all.

August 16th, 2009 LONDON - Injured England batsman Kevin Pietersen has said that with the fifth and final Ashes Test taking place next week, it is time for somebody to stand up and be counted. In an article for News of The World, KP says: "It's time for a hero.

July 31st, 2009 LONDON - Injured Australian wicket-keeper Brad Haddin faces the danger of missing the rest of the ongoing Ashes series due to a fractured finger. Haddin was injured moments before the start of third Test at Edgbaston Thursday and in almost the same spot where Glenn McGrath fatefully sprained his ankle by tripping on a cricket ball during the warm-up for the corresponding game four years ago.

July 25th, 2009 LONDON - England fast bowler Steve Harmison will retire from Test cricket after the ongoing Ashes series. Harmison, 30, is said to be tired of the treadmill and will apparently also quit one-day international cricket and Twenty20 internationals.

July 7th, 2009 LONDON - In the absence of an injured Brett Lee, Australian captain Ricky Ponting has asked his inexperienced fast bowlers to become Ashes heroes. Australia's Ashes defence campaign suffered a major blow as Lee, making a comeback from an ankle injury, was ruled out of the first Test at Cardiff starting Wednesday after he pulled an abdominal muscle.

July 7th, 2009 LONDON - England captain Andrew Strauss is confident that his boys have the ability to handle the pressure of playing in the Ashes. Strauss believes that England cricketers have to stay calm even in a tense situation if they want to repeat the success of 2005, when they won the Ashes after 18 years.

June 30th, 2009 MELBOURNE - Australia's injured all-rounder Shane Watson has been almost ruled out for the first Ashes Test after he did not train with the team in Worcester. Watson, who has an injured thigh, was confined to walking laps with team physiotherapist Alex Kountouris in a crucial training session in the lead-up to Australia's tour match against the England Lions starting on Wednesday evening.

June 29th, 2009 LONDON - Australian fast bowler Peter Siddle has predicted plenty of on-field verbal spats between the Australians and England's star batsman Kevin Pietersen during the upcoming Ashes series, which is scheduled to begin from July 8. "I am pretty sure there is going to be a little bit said out in the field here and there.

June 26th, 2009 LONDON - The England cricket team is all set to chug along to Belgium on the Eurostar to get battle hardened for the first Ashes Test starting July 8 in Cardiff. For any team, preparation for the Ashes is incomplete without a visit to the battlegrounds of Westeren Europe.

June 24th, 2009 LONDON - England's fast bowler Stuart Broad wants to help his team regain Ashes, in order to stop his dad Chris from talking about his triumph against Australia 22 years ago. Broad has grown up knowing all about the glory of winning the Ashes, because his father keeps telling him, The Sun reports.

June 12th, 2009 LONDON - England all rounder Andrew Flintoff has said that he is confident about making it to the Ashes squad, and he proved it by knocking over former Aussie opener Michael De Venuto with his second ball. According to The Sun, Flintoff was included at the last minute by Lancashire for the four-day match against Durham after seamer Tom Smith was injured in the warm-ups.

June 11th, 2009 LONDON - Injured all-rounder Andrew Flintoff has brightened England's chances in the forthcoming Ashes series against Australia by announcing he will be fit for the tournament. Flintoff has made a quick recovery from a knee operation and has revealed that he has suffered no ill-effects from strenuous bowling sessions over the past few days, adding he could return to playing for Lancashire against Durham by Friday.

May 31st, 2009 LONDON - Unlike his captain Ricky Ponting and vice-captain Michael Clarke, who refused to predict the outcome of the Ashes series, Australian fast bowler Brett Lee feels it would be pretty close. Its going to be tight again and its going to be played in the same spirit as 2005, said Lee who has returned to the squad after surgery to his injured left ankle in January.

May 31st, 2009 LONDON - John Buchanan, architect of Australia's 5-0 win in the 2006 Ashes, can switch loyalties this year. Buchanan, who recently lost his advisory contract with Cricket Australia (CA) was in England last week for meetings with England officials and members of the team coaching staff about their Ashes strategy and planning.