Lunch Report: Lancashire 221-9 (85 overs) v Somerset 238

Lunch on the third day (Somerset won toss)

Jon Culley
Friday 25 April 2008 08:38 EDT
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Dismal scenes here, I'm afraid, with drizzle around throughout the morning to prevent any play in the first session, which has been bad news for anyone turning up in the hope of seeing Andrew Flintoff in action again after his 90-second appearance yesterday afternoon.

The consensus among Freddie's Lancashire teammates is that, even were he to have eight consecutive ducks between now and the first Test at Lord's on 15 May, he should be selected for his bowling in any event.

"Find me a better bowler in England at the moment," the Lancashire wicketkeeper, Luke Sutton, said -- and if anyone knows how near his best Freddie is, then it is the man with the gauntlets when Flintoff is thumping the ball down at 90 miles per hour.

"I don't think anyone need worry about Freddie with the ball and I don't think they particular have to worry about him with the bat -- he just needs a bit of luck."

If that is a partial opinion, the Justin Langer's is not. The Somerset captain's view, based on this match, is that England should not hesitate to bring him back at the earliest opportunity. "What I've seen here confirms to me that Freddie is up there with the best bowlers I've faced in my career," the 37-year-old Australian said -- and that from a man with 105 Test caps.

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