ANDREW Flintoff is keen to put the “tough winter” behind him and avoid more injuries that forced him to miss a lot of cricket over the last two years.

“I spent several weeks working very hard at my fitness when I came back from the West Indies and, hopefully, that will stand me in good stead come the summer,” Flintoff told BBC Radio Five Live.

Since the Ashes 2006-07, Flintoff has only featured in eight of the 27 Tests England have played. In the same period he missed 24 ODIs as well.

A recurring problem was his left ankle on which he underwent a third operation in June 2007. He did not play any international cricket between October 2007 and July 2008.

A hip injury forced him to miss two Tests, two ODIs and the Twenty20 on the recent tour of West Indies.

Flintoff said the winter tours of India and West Indies had been testing for all the players. “It’s been a tough winter all round,” he said. “Going to India before Christmas with everything that happened (after the Mumbai terror strike), and coming home and going back, was testing for everyone.

“There have been lots of things going on. These are long tours. We are proud to play for England but people have got things at home as well and families who you desperately miss when you’re away. When you come to the end of a trip, of course people are looking forward to getting home and seeing people you haven’t seen for a long time.”

Flintoff has been included in the preliminary squad for the World Twenty20 and could be a candidate to lead the side since Test and one-day captain Andrew Strauss was absent from the list. But Flintoff said he had not thought about being captain again. “It’d be something I’d have to think about and see if I could be the best man for the job. I don’t think many people would turn it down.

“I’ve not played a lot of Twenty20 cricket and I’d like to play more. I’m not saying the money is not very appealing, but there’s a lot more to it.” (Cricinfo)