England fans hoping Andrew Flintoff will bow out of Test cricket in style will have to wait a while longer after the all-rounder could only manage seven in the Ashes decider on Thursday.
 Flintoff, whose 79-Test career has been blighted by injuries, reckons his body can no longer stand the strain of the five-day format.
 The star of England's 2005 Ashes series win walked out to a standing ovation from a capacity 23,500 crowd for the fifth Test at the Oval on Thursday.
 England were in trouble at 229 for five, after captain Andrew Strauss had won the toss on a typically good batting pitch at the south London ground.
 The 31-year-old Flintoff got off the mark with a streaky, sliced four down to third man off left-arm quick Mitchell Johnson.
 But spectators hoping this would be the start of a barnstorming innings, in a match England had to win to regain the Ashes, were to be disappointed.
 The big-hitting Flintoff was still in single figures when, not moving his feet, he tried to cut a wide Johnson delivery but succeeded only in edging through to wicket-keeper Brad Haddin.
 After just 22 minutes and 19 balls at the crease, featuring that solitary boundary, Flintoff trudged back into the pavilion with England now 247 for six.
 But not many sportsmen enjoy fairytale finishes let alone fairytale careers, a point Flintoff, who has most recently been struggling with a right knee problem, acknowledged on Tuesday
 "I have had these injuries but I am grateful I have played in as many Tests as I have done," Flintoff said. 
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 It was that knee injury which saw the Lancashire all-rounder left out of the England side that lost the fourth Test by an innings and 80 runs as Australia levelled the series at 1-1.
 Flintoff has proved popular with fans ever since making his debut as a 20-year-old against South Africa back in 1998.
 Bowling fast and hitting the ball a long way as Flintoff can, has always had a primal appeal to spectators.
 That was the case with Flintoff's illustrious England predecessor Ian Botham and post World War II Australia great Keith Miller.
 Compared with those two players and the outstanding all-rounder of the last 25 years, Imran Khan - who averaged 37.69 with the bat and 22.81 with the ball - Flintoff's average of 32 in both disciplines does not appear that impressive.
 And while Imran, when Pakistan captain, saw his record improve to an even more praiseworthy 52.35 with the bat and 20.27 with the ball, there was no such marked change in Flintoff's figures when he was in charge of England, which included a 5-0 Ashes series loss in Australia in 2006/07.
 So Flintoff has probably had occasionally great moments, such as when he bowled England to victory in the second Test of this series at Lord's rather than been a truly great player.
 However, England captain Andrew Strauss told reporters at the Oval on Wednesday: "I don't believe you rate someone purely on their stats, you rate them on their contribution to team victories and to the game of cricket. 
 "And in those two senses 'Fred' has been a massive player for us. He's obviously a huge character as well and I don't think the bare stats do justice to the man. 
 "He's earned the right to be one of the best players I've seen in my generation and he's earned it because he has put in big performances at just the right time. Hopefully, he can do that once more and lead us to victory."
 But not just yet.

England fans hoping Andrew Flintoff will bow out of Test cricket in style will have to wait a while longer after the all-rounder could only manage seven in the Ashes decider on Thursday.

Flintoff fairytale finish on hold

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Flintoff fairytale finish on hold

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