The Ashes: Man of Series Betting. We tip Flintoff

If as expected in my main preview, England do make this Ashes a highly competitive contest, there is one player who must play his best. That man is Andrew Flintoff, who since the start of 2004 has averaged 46.81 with the bat and 23.83 with the ball.It is these world-class allrounder statistics that makes the 20/1 on offer for Flintoff to be player of the series slightly baffling. Granted, Australia are the odds-on favourites, which is reflected by six of the players at the top of the list. Nevertheless, this English side are a quality Test outfit and have a decent chance of finishing the series at least on level terms. And if it does happen, it is inevitable the England number six will have scored vital runs and taken crucial wickets. If England do play well, another player sure to be at the forefront is Steve Harmison. It was only until fairly recent, the Durham paceman topped the bowling world rankings. After a very successful triangular one-day series against Australia and Bangladesh, the signs are that Harmison is returning to his best form.Looking at the Australians, and should they have the upper hand in the series, it could pay to back Brett Lee to be named player of the series. The fast bowler is nearing a return to the Test side after being out for 19 months for various reasons.After taking 14 wickets in the one-Day Internationals, Lee has made it hard for the selectors to leave him out of the Test arena anymore. The extended break will have made Lee extremely hungry to impress, making the 12/1 on offer too good to resist.