By Oliver Brett

Flintoff will hope to find his batting form if he goes to Abu Dhabi

Andrew Flintoff's former England team-mate Alex Tudor says the star player's career could end if he is rushed back to Test duty too soon.

Tudor told BBC Sport: "He's had that many operations on that ankle, he has to make sure he gives himself the best chance before coming back.

"Even if he puts off his international career for six months or so then everyone's going to benefit."

Flintoff may play for Lancashire in a tournament in the UAE in March.

But he would feature as a batsman only in the 17-day event also featuring county champions Sussex, Roses rivals Yorkshire, plus Essex and Somerset.

The Arabian Cricket Challenge, with the UAE national side forming the sixth team, begins on 12 March.

606: DEBATE There is no player in this country at present to replace Freddie's awesome presence when fighting fit quartz21

All matches take place under floodlights in Sharjah and Abu Dhabi and are 50-overs-per-side.

Essex star Tudor, who has known Flintoff since he was eight, said: "Maybe it's better not not to try to rush him back and most probably end his career.

"We need to be giving him as long as possible to get the ankle right for bowling."

In October, Flintoff had a fourth operation on his left ankle, carried out by Professor Niek van Dijk.

Previous surgeons had failed to get to the root of a bone spur problem, but this time there is renewed hope.

Flintoff's Lancashire team-mate Mal Loye told BBC Sport: "It looks fairly likely that he will be going on the trip [to Abu Dhabi] but you never know how far he's come, after rehabilitation and so on, whether or not he will be ready.

Flintoff and Tudor on England 1999-2000 tour of South Africa

"Talking to him he's very optimistic. Apparently this surgeon is the best in the world, and has done the best he can.

"But Freddie won't want to come back too soon, which is a very wise thing to do."

Loye said the coming months may be a good opportunity for Flintoff to re-discover the batting form that has eluded him in recent times.

"As we all know he is one of England's best bowlers, but people have maybe forgotten how good a batter he is.

"Maybe he's forgotten how good a batter he is. He's as destructive as anyone in the world - it's something he might be focusing on, to get his batting back to where it was a couple of years ago."

After a one-day series in New Zealand in February, and a Test tour there the following month, England have a typically busy summer schedule with matches against New Zealand and South Africa.