Rob Key hints at longer England role for Freddie Flintoff with Ben Stokes point
Freddie Flintoff has all the attributes to become a top coach after making his return to English cricket, according to Rob Key.
Flintoff made a lowkey public comeback over the summer by joining up with the England men’s white-ball team. It was the first time the 46-year-old had been seen in public since his terrifying 130mph crash while filming for Top Gear in December 2022.
The former all-rounder was welcomed back with open arms by the England players, who enjoyed working with him during the One-Day International series against New Zealand. Flintoff then worked as an assistant coach with the team for ODIs against Ireland in September and for T20Is in the West Indies in December.
Flintoff had previously moved away from cricket, making a successful TV career on shows like Top Gear and A League Of Their Own, but he is now focusing on the game once again. He has been appointed head coach of the Northern Superchargers in the Men’s Hundred and his close friend, and managing director of England men’s cricket, Key thinks he will thrive in coaching.
Key said on the Tailenders podcast : “When he got with the white-ball team, that was the first time he’d been seen in public and everyone loves seeing him, because you forget everyone grew up watching him. And since then he’s now back to his old self a little bit, which is great to see. Jimmy [Anderson] played golf with him the other day.
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“He’s come on so much from where he was. I think he’ll be a brilliant coach because he has empathy. He was a great player who also had struggles, like [Ben] Stokes, who has had his tough times – and your scars are what make you.
“Freddie is the same, a little bit. They know what it’s like to fail and that’s so helpful to have empathy for players – their world comes to an end when they get out, or you get hit around the park. They have understanding.”
Freddie Flintoff will coach the Northern Superchargers in the Hundred this summer (Ashley Allen/Getty Images)HAVE YOUR SAY! Do you think Freddie Flintoff can become a top coach? Comment below.
Key was instrumental in facilitating Flintoff’s return to cricket, having encouraged him to leave his sofa and watch the sport he loves. Asked how he is, Key replied: “He’s really good actually. I had a health scare a few years ago – a mini stroke – and what I found was that after is actually worse than the actual thing because you get so much anxiety – and I never really struggled with that. And all of a sudden I’m sitting at home watching telly – I was watching SAS Who Dares Wins all the time just panicking.
“I remember when Freddie went through his accident, it was incredibly serious, I don’t think people realised at the time how serious it was. He was in a lot of pain but he’s also just sitting around in his own thoughts all the time. So I said ‘why don’t you come down and watch the cricket?’
“He’s got two older boys who love cricket and they’re very good players. I said ‘bring them down and they can go and watch and we’ll just sit in a back room watching’. You can see it better on TV. So he came down. The first day was the Ireland Test. You could tell he hadn’t been out at all and gradually, game after game, he got better and better. And I love the fact that cricket was the thing that helped him.”
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