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I'd like Fred to go and get lots of overs and miles into his legs and some runs under his belt.

Sir Ian Botham
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England v New Zealand
First Test, 15-19 May
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Andrew Flintoff has returned to action this season with Lancashire following a recurring ankle problem.

But Botham, England's greatest all-rounder, believes Flintoff should be given more playing time with his county instead of featuring in England's opening summer Test series with New Zealand.

Botham told skysports.com: "I wouldn't play Fred until the South Africa series, I want Fred to play County cricket and I'd like him to go and get lots of overs and miles into his legs and some runs under his belt.

"I wouldn't rush him back into the Test team, I'd give him time to get bedded back in and get his confidence back.

"I see no reason to make any changes to the team."

Botham has been impressed with the job that England coach Peter Moores has done so far and believes he is the right man to take England forward building up to the all-important Ashes series next summer.

He continued: "Peter Moores has got to be given time, he had to reshape things and revamp the way the England team thought and acted after the Duncan Fletcher period.

"I think the last 18 months of Fletcher's involvement with England was 18 months too long, I think he should have gone a lot earlier.

"He became very sour, bitter and twisted and unfortunately it affected the team.

"So Moores has done well and he deserves time to do things his way and the big test will come in 12 months with the Ashes."

IPL

The former England captain also sees no reason for England to follow India's lead and introduce a Premier League, which would in effect change the structure of the county game.

Nor does Botham believe it will affect the international game, despite some England players expressing their interest in future participation.

"We have a Twenty20 competition in the summer here which lasts for two weeks which is perfect.

"The IPL lasts six weeks which I think is too long. The razzmatazz and all the hoorays and what have you of the opening match seems to have died down.

"You don't hear too much about it now. I think it's almost impossible to sustain that kind of momentum for six weeks and I think we have it right with our two week competition.

"And I don't see the IPL as a threat to international cricket at all."

Sir Ian Botham was talking at the launch of his 2008 charity walk 'Beefy's Great British Walk - Against Childhood Leukaemia', in aid of the UK's leading blood cancer charity Leukaemia Research