Andrew Flintoff reveals battle with depression and alcohol dependence

Andrew Flintoff, the former England and Lancashire all-rounder, has revealed he suffered with depression during the 2006-7 Ashes whitewash in Australia, and that he was drinking too much during the 2007 World Cup. Speaking in an upcoming BBC1 documentary, Freddie Flintoff, Hidden Side of Sport, he admits: "I was having a quiet drink with my dad Colin on Christmas Eve 2006 [having already lost the Ashes] and as we made our way home I started crying my eyes out. I told him I'd tried my best but that I couldn't do it any more, I couldn't keep playing. "We talked and, of course, I dusted myself down and carried on. But I was never the same player again. I was captain of England and financially successful. Yet instead of walking out confidently to face Australia in one of the world's biggest sporting events, I didn't want to get out of bed, never mind face people." Talking about the 2007 World Cup, during which time he was dropped from the one-day side following the infamous pedalo incident, Flintoff added: "The whole time I was on the field and throughout that World Cup all I could think about was that I wanted to retire. "I didn't understand what was happening to me. I knew when I got back to my room I couldn't shut off, which is why I started having a drink. It got to the stage where I was probably drinking more than I should. "All I wanted was for the doctor to tell me what was wrong but no one suggested it was depression. There's a certain sense of shame when I remember sitting in the dressing room after winning a one-day international in the West Indies. The lads were celebrating and I didn't want to be a part of it, I didn't want to do anything but sit on my own in the corner." • Freddie Flintoff, Hidden Side of Sport is on BBC1 on 11 January