Andrew Flintoff's Hat-trick Helps England End Winter of Trouble

We have not seen much of Super Fred on this tour – few runs for Andrew Flintoff, wholehearted but largely fruitless bowling and an injury in the middle of theTest series. There were only three runs from him yesterday too. He had become the talismanic all rounder who could not bat his eyelids or take a wicket.

Then he bowled yesterday, magnificently in the hour of need, ripping out Ramnaresh Sarwan in his first spell and then returning later, as West Indies began a charge for the line by taking their batting powerplay, to hammer his 90 mile an hour yorkers into the crease, removing Denesh Ramdin and Ravi Rampaul with successive balls to set up a hat-trick. Perhaps this was payback for some of the pain and suffering. Sulieman Benn had no answer, his stumps splayed as the Colossus soaked in the plaudits from his team-mates.

Flintoff finished with five for 19 from five overs, the best ODI figures of his career, and it sealed a win for England by 26 runs, that, right at the last gasp, gave them the series and something to cheer them on their way home today after a trying and intensive winter. Andrew Strauss and Andy Flower have worked monumentally hard to instill a work ethic that has regard to personal responsibility and there have been signs since the first Test that this has been taken on board. In this one-day series they have fought back well, to take the last two games of the five.

"We are," said Strauss afterwards, "very happy." He played particular tribute to Flintoff, the obvious man of the match, whom he recognised had experienced a tough tour.

That these two wins have come in shortened matches will stand them in good stead as the focus in the early part of the one-day summer will be on the World Twenty20 championship in June. On Monday the preliminary 30-man squad for the tournament is announced, and the manner in which for example Ravi Bopara has begun to respond to opening will have been noted at a time where players with weight of shot are scarce. It will also give some further credence to Flower, who will return to be interviewed next week for the position of team director knowing he has a success on his hands to stick on his CV.

At the halfway stage of a match reduced to 29 overs apiece because of persistent rain the outcome was very much in the balance. England had struggled to 172 for five, a middling score, no better. But James Anderson had Chris Gayle caught third ball, inevitably by Flintoff, at second slip and the battering ram was gone.

Throughout Andrew Strauss manipulated his bowling cleverly and, led by Flintoff, they responded, removing Sarwan and Lendl Simmons . When Paul Collingwood, mixing his pace well, had Shivnarine Chanderpaul caught in the deep, West Indies were 69 for four and in trouble.

Now, though, came a worrying development for England in the form of a fifth- wicket stand between Dwayne Bravo and the mountainous Kieron Pollard, who smashed two sixes to Bravo's one during a partnership that produced 55 in nine overs. Successive deliveries changed the momentum crucially and finally to England. First Bravo, having made 33, cuffed Stuart Broad straight at Flintoff at point. From the next ball Pollard lofted the ball straight to Collingwood at long-on. By that time the game was up and the stage set for Flintoff's hat-trick finale.

The England innings stagnated midway after Kevin Pietersen and Ravi Bopara had laid the groundwork for a total in excess of 200. Andrew Strauss, ignoring the lesson of a week ago, had chosen to pull Rampaul's first delivery with no reconnaissance and lobbed a gentle catch to midwicket. But Pietersen and Bopara then added 80 in 14 overs before Pietersen fell tamely, cutting Benn to backward point for 48, from 49 balls with four fours and a straight six. Twice Bopara had connected on the leg side and gained six each time. But, having made 44, he went for another leg-side hit, succeeding only in top-edging massively to the keeper. Owais Shah and Flintoff came and went in quick succession and it was left to Collingwood and Matt Prior, with unbeaten innings of 35 and 25, and an unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 60 in eight overs to see them to respectability.