I'm sober now, says Freddie, who hasn't had a drink for three months

Flintoff has been working on 'lifestyle issues' following the rows with Duncan Fletcher that cost him a prominent role in the team.

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The former national coach has claimed that 'Freddie' let him down during last winter's tour of Australia by turning up to a practice session still intoxicated following a night-long binge, at a time when he was team captain.

Having decided against taking action, the Zimbabwean was forced to drop his star player two months later, following the infamous St Lucia pedalo escapade during the World Cup.

While the revelations from Fletcher's forthcoming autobiography, Behind The Shades — exclusively serialised in Sportsmail — have sent shockwaves through English cricket, they have come at a time when Flintoff, 29, has curbed his off-field excesses.

Having forged a reputation as a sporting icon who works hard and plays hard, he has not touched alcohol since mid-summer.

After a third operation on his blighted left ankle in July, the big Lancastrian has been 'dry' in a bid to revitalise his career. A well-placed source last night confirmed that 'alcohol has been out of the equation for Flintoff for three months'.

While the country's leading player stopped drinking partly to aid his recovery process, he has also been working with the England and Wales Cricket Board and the Professional Cricketers' Association on 'lifestyle issues'.

Sources close to Freddie admitted on Monday that the fall-out from the pedalo saga, when he was stripped of the vicecaptaincy, had a profound effect on him and the penny had dropped about his drinking.

He is currently recuperating from a fourth ankle operation in the United States, where he is said to be aware of Fletcher's comments but 'philosophical' about them.

Wicketkeeper Paul Nixon, who played alongside Flintoff during the one-day series in Australia and the World Cup, leaped to the defence of his team-mate yesterday, saying: 'I don't think Freddie's got a drink problem.' However, former England captain Graham Gooch argued that Flintoff had not shown sufficient responsibility. 'Obviously all this helps book sales, but when you're made captain of England and you have the highest honour in the game, you have to set the leadership standards,' he said.