#OTD in 2004: Andrew Flintoff's all-round brilliance helped England seal past Sri Lanka

Flintoff was in the form of his life in 2004 [PC: Twitter]

On this day, eighteen years ago, Andrew Flintoff wreaked havoc to help England win by 49 runs against Sri Lanka.  The occasion was the Match 10 of the Champions Trophy 2004 at Southampton.

Andrew Flintoff propels England to a competitive total

Invited to bat first, England had a stable start with openers Marcus Trescothick and Vikram Solanki. However, Solanki's wicket opened the floodgates for Sri Lanka, wherein they ran through Michael Vaughan and Andre Strauss as well. 

Flintoff arrived at the crease at 70/3 in the 19th over. He then took enough time to settle and kickstarted his momentum with a sweep against Upul Chandana, which went for a four. 

The dismissal of Trescothick (66) could not hamper Flintoff's confidence, as the runs kept flowing with his bat, which steered the Three Lions at a brisk rate. With his prolific ball-striking capabilities, he completed his third ODI hundred, before perishing for 104 off 91. 

England posted 251 on the board in their designated quota of 50 overs. Chaminda Vaas was the wrecker-in-chief for Sri Lanka. 

Sri Lanka succumb to pressure

Due to the incessant rain, the adjusted target for Sri Lanka was 145 in 24 overs. 

In response to the chase, Sri Lanka lost Avishka Gunawardene and Marvan Atapattu early. Although Sanath Jayasuriya (27) played well , he could not accelerate enough before becoming a victim of Flintoff. 

Afterwards, Saman Jayantha (23) and keeper Kumar Sangakkara (17*) were the notable contributors as Sri Lanka were restricted to 95/5 in 24 overs. 

Flintoff and Steve Harmison scalped two wickets each for England.

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