Best XI of Bad Boys in cricket

4. Andrew Flintoff

Andrew Flintoff is a generational great for England- more than the numbers it’s his impact to turn the game on its head which he made his selling point. His heroics in the 2005 Ashes are greatly talked about, so are his controversial encounters.

Big Freddie hogged the limelight at the Wankhede in 2002; as he removed his jersey and sprinted across the ground after taking a match-winning wicket for England- and Dada gave him an apt reply few months late at The Lord’s. Flintoff reached his peak during the 2005 Ashes and played a massive role in England winning the urn. But that began his downfall.

He was handed over the captaincy and things went haywire for the all-rounder. Australia gave England a 5-0 drubbing down under and Flintoff had disputes with the coach Duncan Fletcher who wanted to sack him there itself. But the worst was yet to come for Freddie. In the 2007 World Cup in West Indies, he was found drunk and had to be picked up from a boat and was immediately stripped off as the vice-captain.

He wasn’t in a healthy mould- both physically and mentally. His sledging of Yuvraj Singh in the T20 World Cup fired back on the youngster Stuart Broad. He was in and out of the team and played his last international game in the 2009 Ashes. The right-hander tried his hands in the IPL and then in professional boxing. But he wasn’t able to be in the perfect shape.