Oval Test will be remembered as Flintoff’s farewell Test: Swann

September 25th, 2009 LONDON - The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has released the itinerary for Pakistan's 'home' series against Australia which is to be played in England in 2010. The ECB has also announced the dates of the home Test and one-day series which the English team is scheduled to play against Bangladesh, Australia and Pakistan next year.

September 8th, 2009 LONDON - England's Ashes hero Stuart Broad doesn't want to replicate all rounder Andrew Flintoff in his life and is not even that keen on taking Flintoff's place at No.7 in the Test team. "No one can replace Fred.

August 21st, 2009 LONDON - Australian captain Ricky Ponting has said that he hasn't thought about the final Ashes Test match at The Oval being his final Test match against England on their soil. Ponting is unlikely to play in the next Ashes series on English soil, which would be held in 2013, but he avoided declaring The Oval Test as the last.

August 20th, 2009 SURREY - England captain Andrew Strauss reckons that the Freddie Factor will inspire his team to do well in the fifth and final Test match at The Oval. Strauss believes the script has already been written for all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who will retire from Test cricket, to produce another epic show in his farewell Test.

August 20th, 2009 LONDON - England cricket captain Andrew Strauss has said that he is prepared to risk losing Andy Flintoff's farewell Test to try to win back the Ashes. Asked if he was prepared to risk losing the Ashes to force the pace against Australia, Strauss replied: "We've got to.

August 19th, 2009 LONDON - Australian captain Ricky Ponting believes that all rounder Andrew Flintoff's farewell could distract England from its quest of regaining the Ashes after nearly four years. "It's going to be interesting to see how it all pans out," the Courier Mail quoted Ponting, as saying as both teams prepare for the deciding fifth and final Test at The Oval tomorrow.

August 19th, 2009 LONDON - Australian vice captain Michael Clarke has said that his side has no intention of chasing a draw in the decisive Ashes Test that starts tomorrow at The Oval. "I don't think we should start that way, no," the Sydney Morning Herald quoted Clarke, as saying.

August 18th, 2009 LONDON - England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff says his retirement from Test cricket will not be a distraction for the team in the last Ashes Test at the Brit Oval. FLintoff expects to be fit for the fifth Test against Australia that starts Thursday as he continues to battle with the knee injury that forced him to call time on his Test career.

August 11th, 2009 LONDON - England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff has got the green light to make his emotional Test farewell in the Ashes decider at The Oval. Freddie's specialist is reported to have told him on Monday that his wonky right knee can withstand five more days' cricket.

August 11th, 2009 LONDON - England's cricket selectors have sent five of their under performing players back to play for their counties in an attempt to find some form ahead of next week's decisive fifth Ashes Test at The Oval. Batsmen Alastair Cook, Ravi Bopara, Ian Bell, and bowlers Graeme Swann and Graham Onions will all turn out for their counties this week.

August 11th, 2009 LONDON - England off-spinner Graeme Swann has said there is no need for knee jerk reactions in the wake of the Leeds defeat against the Australians, and urged England selectors to retain faith in both Ravi Bopara and Ian Bell in next week's Ashes decider. In an article for The Sun, Swann said: "The worst thing England can do is panic in response to one bad performance at Headingley and all the pressure from the pundits.

July 20th, 2009 LONDON - England off-spinner Graeme Swann is insisting that his team will not panic on the final day of the second Ashes Test being played at Lord's. The Aussies need another 209 with five wickets remaining to complete a historic world record run chase.

July 10th, 2009 CARDIFF - All-rounder Andrew Flintoff has called on his teammates to recall the Ashes spirit of 2005 and lift themselves to combat the Australians more aggressively in the ongoing first Test here. Flintoff's call came as the Australians came up with a score of 249 for the loss of Phillip Hughes's wicket in reply to England's 436 all out.

July 4th, 2009 LONDON - England off-spinner Graeme Swann, who has emerged as the leading Test wicket-taker in the world in 2009 with 26 victims, says that he has learnt from his errors, but has lost the ability to smile along the way. In an interview with The Sun, Swann said he was looking forward to his Ashes debut in England, and added that when he was doing the drinks for the squad in 2005, the atmosphere gave him the goose bumps.

June 25th, 2009 LONDON - Spin legend Shane Warne insists that England is wrong to line up Monty Panesar to play in the first Test against Australia, starting July 8. Warne says Adil Rashid should partner Graeme Swann in Cardiff on July 8 instead of Panesar.