Flower expects Flintoff to sign new deal

London:

England coach Andy Flower is confident injured all-rounder Andrew Flintoff will sign the incremental contract he was awarded on Friday by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) for the next 12 months.

Flintoff, 31, who is recovering from knee surgery and is not expected to be fit by February at the earliest, did not qualify for a full central contract as he retired from Tests after the end of the Ashes series win over Australia.

But he still wants to be a One-Day International player for England.

Signing the incremental contract would give Flower a say in when and where Flintoff plays.

But if the fast bowler and hard-hitting batsman decided to go 'freelance' he could look forward to a longer stint in the third season of the lucrative Indian Premier League - where England's central group of players will be restricted to three weeks as in 2009.

Flower, speaking at Lord's here on Friday ahead of Saturday's fourth one-day international against Australia, said: "First up I would like to see him fit again because we don't know how long that is going to take.

"I don't think there are going to be huge negotiations over what type of games he plays.

"'Fred' will be available for one-day international and Twenty20 cricket for England. Simple as that."

Earlier, England national selector Geoff Miller said: "The decision to award an incremental contract to Andrew reflects our view that he will still have an important role to play in our one-day side going forward and we wish him well with his rehabilitation from injury.

"As we saw in this summer's Ashes Test series, he remains a world-class talent," the former England off-spinner added.

The Ashes winning trio of wicketkeeper Matt Prior, off-spinner Graeme Swann and pace bowler Graham Onions are among the 11 players awarded the lucrative full, annual deals, worth as much as 300,000 pounds.

But fast bowler Stephen Harmison and left-arm spinner Monty Panesar have been completely overlooked while former captain Michael Vaughan's retirement means he no longer has a central contract.

England captain Andrew Strauss and injured batsman Kevin Pietersen were among those given a full central contract.

"I am delighted Graham Onions, Matt Prior and Graeme Swann have all been awarded 12-month central contracts for the first time," Miller said.

"Central contracts are designed to reward players who perform well consistently for England and all three have made a very significant contribution to the team's recent success in regaining the Ashes and beating West Indies at home in both Test and one-day series," Miller added.

Harmison has hinted at retiring from Tests but Flower said he was in the frame for the upcoming tour of South Africa.

"He could go to South Africa with the Test team, and play a very significant role," Flower explained. "When I spoke to him he was still quite keen to play but still had not made a decision. I would love him to carry on."

The contracts run from October 1, 2009 to September 30, 2010.

England central contracts 2009 to 2010: James Anderson, Ian Bell, Stuart Broad, Paul Collingwood, Alastair Cook, Graham Onions, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior (wkt), Ryan Sidebottom, Andrew Strauss (capt), Graeme Swann

Incremental contracts 2009 to 2010: Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Andrew Flintoff, Adil Rashid, Owais Shah, Jonathan Trott, Luke Wright.