Flintoff to go under knife

Andrew Flintoff will undergo surgery on his injured knee on Tuesday, the England & Wales Cricket Board have confirmed.

The all-rounder had been expected to undergo an operation on his troublesome knee after hobbling his way through England's successful Ashes campaign.

An ECB statement said the surgery would sideline Flintoff until after the Champions Trophy in South Africa next month.

Flintoff will therefore also miss the upcoming limited overs matches against Ireland, in Belfast on Thursday, which precedes the two Twenty20 and seven one-day internationals against Australia.

The Lancastrian, who announced he would retire from Test cricket during the Ashes series because of injury, will be replaced by Oval centurion Jonathan Trott for the contest in Belfast, although no replacement will be called for the Australia matches.

"England on Sunday announced that Andrew Flintoff had been withdrawn from their squad for the One-Day International in Ireland, The NatWest International Twenty20s and NatWest Series against Australia and The ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa," a statement from the ECB read.

"The Lancashire and England all-rounder will undergo exploratory arthroscopic surgery on his injured right knee on Tuesday.

"A further update on the outcome of the operation and the likely timescale for rehabilitation will be released in due course.

"The selectors have opted not to replace Flintoff at this stage in their squads for The NatWest International Twenty20s and The NatWest Series against Australia."