The Andrew Flintoff international rollercoaster was on the move again today following a sudden summons to India from the England coach, Duncan Fletcher. England have been on tour only a week, but the poor showing of the seamers in the opening game against the MCA President's XI and the reduced pace of Craig White, returning after a knee injury, convinced Fletcher and Nasser Hussain that their squad needed beefing up - and that Flintoff was the man capable of reaching the parts the other 16 couldn't. An SOS call was put in to the Australian Academy in Adelaide, where Flintoff has been training with England's Academy squad, and he is due to arrive in India at the weekend.

"We just feel that with the side we're looking at, we need five bowlers to cover all bases," Fletcher said. "With our inexperience, to go in with four bowlers would be high-risk in England. To do it here would leave Nasser with a few problems."

If Flintoff does play in the first Test at Mohali on December 3, he will open the bowling with one other seamer (almost certainly Matthew Hoggard), leaving England free to play two spinners and bat Flintoff and White at Nos. 6 and 7. This would mean no place for one of the six specialist batsmen who played in the first game - most likely Michael Vaughan.

Flintoff's recall is the latest step in a rehabilitation that has taken him from fat boy to fit boy. An allrounder of enormous talent, Flintoff has been seen as a saviour of English cricket for years, especially in the environs of Old Trafford, but his up-and-down career has been dogged by injury and digs about his weight. In three years as a full international, he has played only nine Tests.

He had an indifferent season for Lancashire in 2001 but was chosen for the England one-day tour of Zimbabwe where he impressed everyone with his clean hitting, disciplined bowling, maturity and willingness to learn. David Lloyd, his old mentor at Old Trafford, said that it looked as if "the penny had finally dropped". He has also warmed cockles at the Academy - where he asked to go after the selectors left him out of the original party.

Flintoff is the 19th name thrown into this minestrone of a squad. Darren Gough and Alec Stewart made themselves unavailable for the tour, and Andy Caddick and Robert Croft withdrew citing security fears following the September 11 attacks, which resulted in late call-ups for Martyn Ball and Richard Johnson.

Tanya Aldred, our assistant editor, is covering the England tour for Wisden.com.

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