Andrew Flintoff has walked away from his role as Northern Superchargers head coach, suggesting the team’s new Indian owners made him feel undervalued.
Flintoff, who remains one of the biggest stars in English cricket, led the Headingley-based Hundred franchise in the last two editions of the tournament but will not be involved next year.
The former England captain revealed the news on the Beard Before Wicket podcast, co-hosted by Superchargers spinner Adil Rashid, indicating he would have liked to stay on after overseeing a third-placed finish this year.
But he claimed conversations with the Sun Group, which have bought the full 100 per cent stake in Superchargers as part of the influx of new investors into the competition, quickly broke down.
‘Unfortunately I’m not going to do it, which is sad,’ he said.
‘The past two years I felt we were building something really nice and I’d have loved to see it through.
‘We’ve got new owners, I spoke to them. They phoned up, they said they wanted us to do it, so I said: ‘Yeah, fine. Make us an offer’.
‘I genuinely don’t do it for the money, although it’s nice, but I think I’m worth (more) than just over a quarter of the (salary of) other head coaches.
‘The money was one thing so I’m not quite sure they wanted me anyway, but then you also want to feel valued.
‘I said, ‘this isn’t going to work for me’ and they weren’t going to move on it.’
Rashid, one of the team’s marquee players, responded by telling Flintoff: ‘You’ll be missed. I wasn’t expecting that.’
Flintoff, who is also head coach of England Lions, could well be of interest to other Hundred teams as the new influence behind the scenes begins to be felt.
London Spirit have already lured Andy Flower away from Trent Rockets and further personnel changes are likely.
Superchargers, meanwhile, are set to change their name to incorporate the Sunrisers branding of their IPL and SA20 stablemates.
After his retirement from professional cricket, Flintoff turned his back on the sport that propelled him to superstardom.
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The 47-year-old, however, launched something of a comeback as he stepped up his rehabilitation from the life-changing injuries he suffered as a result of the accident he was involved in while filming an episode of Top Gear.
‘If one thing’s come out of it which is positive it’s being back in cricket,’ the former England all-rounder said earlier this year.
‘It’s probably the one thing that saved me. I’ve been welcomed back into that fold. It’s such a good place. I feel it’s safe.
‘I have moments when I’m sat in a dressing room and I’m watching a game of cricket surrounded by cricketers and friends, and I’m able to forget.