Andrew Flintoff has recently been in the news for his refusal of an ECB contract in order to become a "freelance" cricketer, though playing is taking a back seat for him as he recuperates from his recent knee surgery in Dubai.

He is not taking a complete rest from cricket though as he will help with the coaching of the UAE national side on a casual basis over the next six months.

The UAE finished seventh in the World Cup Qualifier earlier this year, just missing out on ODI status and will certainly benefit from Flintoff's experience.

The UAE will play in the ACC Twenty20 Cup later this year, and in the World Twenty20 qualifier in February (not later this year as erroneously reported elsewhere), with reports in the Ugandan media suggesting that they will host Uganda for an Intercontinental Shield match around the same time.