Botham says Flintoff changing his action would also help his batting

Despite undergoing his third ankle operation this year, and missing the tour of Sri Lanka, Flintoff has so far been reluctant to make changes.

"It's not easy if you've bowled one way for a long time but it shouldn't affect him too much," Botham told BBC 5live.

"If he can get the confidence to do that, it would help with his batting."

Interview: Sir Ian Botham

Botham, who receives his knighthood on Wednesday, said he agreed with former England bowling coach Allan Donald on how some slight modifications could help Flintoff regain form with bat and ball.

"The ankle is a problem which isn't going to go away and Allan was probably spot-on when he said he needs to change his action a bit," he said.

"He needs to get the foot more front-on at delivery to take the strain.

"Freddie has got calves like sparrow's legs, so he's worked on building them up and that doesn't help.

"The little slump we're seeing is because one department is not working and the other one he's not got time to think about."

Flintoff responded to Donald's concerns in August by saying: "I'm 29 and it would take a lot to change things now."