Cricket: IPL SOS; TOUR CRISIS INQUEST Flintoff: England flops need more Twenty 20 cricket.. we've fallen way behind India.

Byline: BY DEAN WILSON Cricket Correspondent in Bhubaneshwar

ANDREW FLINTOFF has told the ECB to send players to the Indian Premier League - or risk England becoming permanent one-day whipping boys.

Flintoff insists it is not about making a quick buck but learning how to play a game that has moved on without English cricketers.

India have outclassed England from start to finish in their one day series and Flintoff believes the Twenty20 attitude is revolutionising the 50-over game in this part of the world.

There is a World Cup here in two years and by then scores of 350-plus will be the norm as teams take the freedom from the shortest form and put it into one-dayers.

Flintoff said: "We've come up against a strong, strong side. In the four games they have outplayed us in every department.

They look very well drilled.

"I think by playing a shorter form of cricket, India have developed new skills with bat and ball, and we've been found wanting here.

"They have definitely developed through playing Twenty20. You look at the way their guys hit the ball and the rate they score at, especially in the middle overs where they knock it around and still find boundaries.

"Zaheer Khan and Sharma showed they have developed skills like slower balls and yorkers, and I'm sure that playing the shorter form has developed those skills.

"I think a few of our players are keen to go to the IPL.

"One thing that has been mentioned is financial reward but I think you look at players' development as well.

"Not just India, you can also see it in some of the West Indians - like Chris Gayle. With the Twenty20 World Cup coming and a lot more one-day cricket, I think it would be good if the lads had a chance to play in the IPL."

It would be easy to take a swipe at Flintoff for finding a convenient reason for England's failures once again, but it didn't seem like he was trying to excuse the way his England colleagues have failed to come up to scratch.

You could also point to the money on offer in the IPL and say that is the real reason they want to go, but Flintoff doesn't need the cash.

His motivation has always been to do what he can for the national cause.

This is not a new problem, though. England have been left behind in one-dayers over the past 16 years by just about everybody when it comes to things such as pinch-hitting, powerplays, spinners, slower balls, death bowlers and lower-order smashers.

With three games left, skipper Kevin Pietersen should take this opportunity to demand selfless cricket from his players, who all have points to prove, but not at the expense of the team.

Flintoff added: "We've still got to try to win the next three.

"I think there is a lot of talent in the dressing room, it's just a question of getting us to all play together.

"We've all got very good basic games, we've all got our strengths. It is just expanding that so we can all improve individually and then, ultimately, as a team.

"A lot of the lads have things to play for, people establishing spots in the team and getting a bit of pride back because it has taken a knock being outplayed like this."

NUMBERS SHAME

TWENTY20 matches played in the last 12 months:

ENGLAND (Bell, Prior, Shah, Pietersen, Flintoff, Collingwood, Patel, Bopara, Swann, Broad, Anderson) - 85

INDIA (Sehwag, Gambhir, Raina, Yuvraj, Dhoni, R Sharma, Pathan, Munaf, Zaheer, Harbhajan, I Sharma) - 152

TOP BATTERS COMPARISON:

ENGLAND

Bell: 6 games, 169 runs @ 42.

Prior: 13 games, 200 runs @ 18.

Shah: 10 games, 254 runs @ 36.

Pietersen: 7 games, 187 runs @ 31. Flintoff: 9 games, 110 @18.

INDIA

Sehwag: 15 games, 406 runs @ 33. Gambhir: 15 games, 534 runs @ 41. Raina: 16 games, 421 runs @ 38. Yuvraj: 16 games, 330 runs @25. Dhoni: 16 games, 432 runs @ 39.

CAPTION(S):

HITTING OUT Andrew Flintoff threw down the gauntlet to the ECB; OUT Ishant gets Flintoff