ANDREW Flintoff is expected to be fit for the fifth npower Test against Australia after swelling on his right knee eased, the England and Wales Cricket Board have announced.

The all-rounder missed the fourth Test at Headingley due to injury but is set to return for the match which England must win to regain the Ashes.

According to the ECB, Flintoff will be ready for The Oval contest providing he carries on with ongoing treatment and takes sufficient rest.

Flintoff's condition was assessed by his specialist yesterday.

An ECB statement said: “The advice received was that the swelling in his knee has significantly eased following the decision by the England management team to rest him from the last Test match and that subject to further rest and intensive treatment, he will be available for selection for the fifth npower Ashes Test at The Brit Oval.”

Flintoff's Lancashire colleague James Anderson is also expected to be fit for the series decider, after a scan on his hamstring showed no serious damage.

Meanwhile, former England paceman Matthew Hoggard has urged selectors to ignore Mark Ramprakash's county record and select a younger man to bolster the batting line-up for fifth Test.

Ramprakash has been the outstanding batsman in domestic cricket in recent seasons, piling on the runs for Surrey and joining the elite club of players with over a hundred first-class centuries.

But Hoggard, who took 248 Test wickets, believes it would be a mistake to pick 39-year-old Ramprakash.

“If you want to go for the out-and-out best batter in the County Championship then he's one of the best batters, but that is taking a backwards step in my view,” Hoggard said.

“He'd be a one-Test wonder, he's not going to play in the future. I think he's a very good batter but what does he do when he steps up to the international scene? He's got a very bad track record mentally.

“I don't think he'll be getting selected. They're more likely to go in for Robert Key or Jonathan Trott.”

Despite his outstanding county record, Ramprakash averages just 27.32 in Test cricket, having played 52 matches, and has not represented his country since 2002.

England’s dismal performance at Headingley where Australia won the fourth Test in two-and-a-half days has sparked calls for change, with number three batsman Ravi Bopara perhaps the most vulnerable batsman.