Former cricketer Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff has opened up about the heart-breaking reaction of his two-year-old son after he was involved in a serious crash while filming Top Gear.
Flintoff is widely regarded as one of England's greatest cricketers, famously helping the team to Ashes glory in 2005.
Since retiring from cricket, he has enjoyed a successful television career, appearing on shows including A League of Their Own, Bullseye, and Top Gear.
In 2022, while filming an episode of Top Gear, Flintoff was involved in a major crash that left him with serious facial and rib injuries.
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In a recent interview with Piers Morgan, he spoke about the impact of crashing the three-wheeled Morgan supercar at Dunsfold Aerodrome near Cranleigh in Surrey.
Flintoff said: "You know, I suffer from PTSD. I have flashbacks and nightmares, but I've probably got more of an acceptance of them now.
“But I suppose that the biggest thing it did do, was brought me back to cricket.
"Family and friends and cricket have been things that now, have probably helped me more than anything.”
Flintoff also shared how the crash affected his family, and especially his young child.
He said: "(After the crash) I would get snappy and angry.
"The kids were incredible… It was the younger one, Preston, because he would have been about two, two and a half, at the time and he wouldn’t come near me to begin with because I was a mess."
Top Gear never returned after the crash, while Flintoff reportedly received around £9 million in compensation from BBC Studios.
The cricket legend also revealed that it took a long time for him to start driving again.
"I've only been driving about four months, four or five months," Flintoff added.
"And I’m alright now.
"To begin with, I was a bit nervy, you know, even playing golf, for a long period of time. I took golf up in the past few years and love it.
"But I wouldn’t even drive the golf buggy. I can’t walk because my knees are bad, so I get one of my mates to drive.
"Just being slapped behind the wheel and getting all them thoughts back."
Since his recovery, Flintoff has returned to television - filming another series of the popular cricket show Field of Dreams and the darts gameshow Bullseye.
He has also recently released a book, Freddie Flintoff: Coming Home: The Moments That Made Me.
Topics: Cricket
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