Piers Morgan, an English Broadcaster and television personality, recently revealed that he received a text message from former England cricket star Andrew Flintoff after a silence lasting eight months.

Flintoff’s cricket career highlights

Flintoff, renowned for his international cricket career spanning from 1998 to 2009, etched his name in cricket history despite career-disrupting injuries. The Lancashire all-rounder played pivotal roles in England’s Ashes victories in 2005 and 2009 on their home turf.

Flintoff’s accident and absence

Last December, former England all-rounder Flintof??f made headlines when he wa?s airlifted to the hospital after? a Top Gear filming accident in Surrey, resulting in facial injuries. This incident brought series 34 of the show to a halt. Subsequently, Flintoff largely kept a low profile.

Flintoff’s return to cricket

However, on September 8th, Flintoff made a public appearance at Cardiff’s Sophia Gardens to watch England’s opening one-day international against New Zealand. The 45-year-old return to the cricketing scene was facilitated by his friend and former teammate, Rob Key, who currently serves as the managing director of the England team. While Flintoff had attended this year’s Ashes series as Key’s guest, he remained out of touch with Piers Morgan for eight months.

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Morgan’s concern

During this period of silence, Morgan had been attempting to contact his “old mate” Flintoff through WhatsApp, expressing his concern and interest in Flintoff’s well-being. Nevertheless, he did not receive any replies, leaving him worried about Flintoff’s condition.

“And for eight months, there was no reply; just a constant, increasingly unsettling silence from a guy who I’ve known for 20 years, texted with very often, and who I consider a great friend. The longer the silence went on, the more worried I grew about what exactly had happened to him in an accident I knew he’d been lucky to survive,” Morgan was quoted as saying by mirror.co.uk

Morgan’s efforts to gather information

Morgan extended his inquiries to Flintoff’s wife, Rachael, and members of Flintoff’s management team in an attempt to gather more information about his friend’s condition. Nevertheless, he only received vague responses, with references to Flintoff being “periscope down.”‘

“I texted him, and Rachael, to say how happy the photos had made me, and to my amazement, Freddie replied,” the 58-year-old added.

Finally, Morgan receives a response from Flintoff

After eight months of silence, Piers Morgan received a response from Andrew Flintof??f, marking their reconnection and bringing an end to the prolonged period of uncertainty and concern.

“I won’t say what he wrote in his message because he’s said nothing publicly yet about what happened that fateful day last December, and it’s for him to choose what he wants to say when he decides to say it. But he sounded very positive, and said he was loving being back around the cricket world again,” Morgan concluded.

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Former England cricketer Andrew Flintoff has been hospitalised after he was involved in a car crash while filming for BBC’s TV Show ‘Top Gear’. The incident took place when Flintoff was filming with a crew at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome in Surrey on Monday (December 12).

“Freddie was injured in an accident at the Top Gear test track this morning – with crew medics attending the scene immediately. He has been taken to hospital for further treatment, and we will confirm more details in due course,” said BBC in a statement.

According to a report in The Sun, Flintoff was taken to the hospital by air ambulance, and his injuries aren’t life-threatening. The report also mentioned that the former all-rounder was driving on the track as normal and not going at high speed.

“Freddie is in hospital after a crash on Top Gear. He was driving on the track as normal. He wasn’t going at high speeds – it was just an accident that could happen to anyone. All the usual health and safety measures were in place for filming too,” said a source as quoted by The Sun.

“Freddie was taken to hospital by air ambulance shortly afterwards. His injuries are not life-threatening and he is receiving treatment. Filming has been postponed for now, and all anyone cares about is Freddie recovering,” the source added.

Notably, it was not the first time that Flintoff had been involved in an accident since he first began presenting the show. In 2019, he crashed into a market stall in Nottinghamshire. Then, in September of the same year, Flintoff crashed during a drag race while filming at E??lvington Airfield in Yorkshire.

Flintoff, who joined the Top Gear show as a host in 2019, bid farewell from the sport in 2009 after playing 79 Tests, 141 one-day internation??als and seven T20s?? for England.

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During Christmas last year, former England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff broke the news of the birth of his and wife Rachel Wools’ fourth child.

In their 15 years of matrimony, Freddie and Rachel were already proud parents of Rocky Flintoff (12), Cor??ey Flintoff (14) and?? Holly Flintoff (15).

Moreover, the couple kept ??the expectation of their fourth child discreet during the entirety of the pregnancy, before Rachel arrived with a bump at th??e Attitude Awards.

Now, the renowned cricketer turned boxer has revealed the reason behind naming his son ‘Preston’ as a tribute to the city he grew up in Lancashire.

“Little Preston was born at Christmas â€?it is the first time I’ve actually spoken about it. But yeah, we have got another baby and it has been nice spending time with him,” Flintoff told talkSport.

The news ??came in as a shocker for fans as the couple previously decided that they were not? planning for more kids, back in 2016.

“We thought about it. I originally wanted five but you have three and that felt like enough. I couldn’t go back to the nappy stage now,” the former all-rounder told The Sun, earlier.

Further, Flintoff reckoned that havi??ng kids improved him as a cricketer at the professio??nal front, where he ended up more free and relaxed.

The watershed moment of ?the marquee all-rounder arrived during the historic 2005 Ashes series, which came right after the birth of his first child Holly.

“My career at the time, I started doing really well. Everyone said that couldn’t happen, but it put everything into perspective. I actually got better,” the popular TV presenter told the First Time Dads Podcast.

“You start thinking, ‘You know what? I’m dressed in whites, we’re chucking a ball around and trying to hit it.’ Although it WAS the most important thing, it now isn’t. It frees you up, especially with batting. I started scoring a lot of runs because I wasn’t bothered about getting out,” Flintoff concluded.

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The gentlemen’s game over the decades has witnessed a paradigm shift in competitiveness, especially with the onset of limited-overs cricket.

?The cricketer??s are subjected to intense pressure situations as well as a gruelling schedule with travelling. Some players also deal with homesickness as well as mental fatigue.

Also, there were cer?tain taboos attached to the unwellness in the past years. But in recent years, the issue has received a lot ??of attention and acknowledgement as a severe ailment.

Today, let’s have a look at the five international cricketers who quit international cricket citing mental health disorders.

1.) Marcus Trescothick

England boasted an explosive opener in the form of?? Marcus Trescoth?ick, whose career span was cut short due to mental fatigue and depression.

Trescothick, in tandem with Nick Knight, formed a dynamic opening partnership for the Three lions. At the peak of his career, aged 32, ?Trescothick had the urge to go back home during the 2006 India tour.

Later that year, Trescothick announced his re??tirement from the game, revealing he was coping with depression.

“The depression’s not over. I’m not ‘cured’. I have good days and bad days, but when the bad days come, I feel them coming, and I know how to act,” The Telegraph quoted Trescothick.

2.) David Bairstow

Bairstow, who played 25 internationals in t??he late 90s, also underwent mental stress and issues, w?hich was initiated post-illness of his wife, Janet.

The wicket-keeper went on to accumulate several financial issues, along with dri??nking and driving charges in 1997.

3.) Jonathan Trott

In Jonathan Trott, England found a reliable number three batsma?n who notched up some memorable tons in his career.

However, it all changed with the 2013 Ashes series Down Under, where Mitchell Johnson ripped apart England’s batting lineup with a barrage of vicious bouncers.

After being hit by Johnson, Trott decided to leave the tour abruptly and announced his retirement from the game due to a “long-standing stress-related condition”.

Although he played County Cricket for Warwickshire, in 2018 he called it quits citing anxiety dis?order??.

“Just coming down to breakfast, I’d sit on my own away from the guys with my cap over my head because I didn’t know how I was going to react to having to go to the cricket ground again. I was waking up looking at the clock hoping the clock had stopped, or that a pylon had fallen on the field and the game had been cancelled, or the stadium had collapsed â€?as long as there was no one in it, of course. You end up thinking of all sorts of ways you wouldn’t have to go to the ground,” Trott told The Independent.

4.) Andrew Flintoff

One of the biggest?? stars produced by England cricket in recent years, all-rounder Andrew Flintoff also battled through mental health issues which forced him to draw curtains to his international career in 2010.

Flintoff was the player of the series in the historic 2005 Ashes? series. In the high-octane series, he contributed exceptionally in all departments.

Howeve?r, their Ashes glory was short-lived as the English team suffered a whitewash Down Under in 2006-07 seven. The series had a hard effect on Flintoff as he resorted to drinking.

“I didn’t understand what was happening to me. I knew when I got back to my room I couldn’t shut off, which is why I started having a drink. It got to the stage where I was probably drinking more than I should,” Flintoff told the Guardian.

5.) Sarah Taylor

Another England cricketer who suffered mental health issues was wicketkeeper-batter Sarah Taylor, who won the 2017 Women’s World Cup at home.

Taylor was re?nowned for her lightnin??g glovework and had 232 dismissals to her name. Also, she was amongst the top scorers in world cricket.

However, Taylor shocked the English cricket community after ?announcing her retirement from the game citing anxiety-related issu?es, which took a toll on her batting.

“This has been a tough decision but I know it’s the right one, for me and for my health moving forward,” Sarah Taylor said.” I can’t thank my teammates enough, both past and present, and the ECB for being supporters and friends along my journey. I am extremely proud of my career. I leave with my head held high and with excitement for what my future holds and what my next chapter brings,” Taylor said in her statement.

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The 2005 Ashes between England and Australia is arguably the be?st Test series to be played in the history of cricket.

The second Test at Edgbaston?? proved to be one of the tightest matches of the series, with the see-saw battle going until the last ball of the game.

One of the Engli??sh crick??eters who single-handedly took his side to victory was all-rounder Andrew Flintoff.

First, he bolstered the English total with his handy 68. Then, he came back to take thr??ee wickets with the ball?.

Wi?th his team tottering at 101-7, Flintoff shepherded the Three Lions to a competitive total, with his precious knock of 7??3 off just 86 balls.

However, Freddie Flintoff recently opened up the sledging he received from the?? then Australian captain Rick??y Ponting, while at the crease, fighting for his side.

“I can never forget Ricky Ponting in the second innings sledging me,” Flintoff spoke of the incident during the Sky Sports Cricket Podcast.

“I stood there with Kevin Pietersen, he looked and he made a joke to his team going. ‘Here we go boys, look at the two superstars! They’re going to be happy with these two, aren’t they’. And it’s like ‘Jog on, Rick! Jog on,” Flintoff added.

Flintoff was unplayable in the second innings as he picked up four wickets, which included the prized scalp of Ponting, along with Justin Langer, Jason Gillespie and Shane Warne. Flintoff walked away with the ‘Man of the Match’ award for his outstanding all-round efforts.

For once, Warne’s valiant knock almost took the victory out of the jaws of England, along with Brett Lee at the other end.

The spin-wizard criticized Ponting for his decision to field first and conceding more than ?400 runs on the very first day.

“Punter’s (Ponting) decision to bowl first was just the worst decision ever, by any captain. So take a back seat, Nas (Nasser Hussain), Punter has got your back,” Warne told foxsports.com.au.

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