Andrew Flintoff insists his stint in the Indian Premier League will help his bid to reach peak condition for the hectic Test summer ahead.

The Lancashire all-rounder has only just returned from England's tour of the Caribbean, but will soon jet off to South Africa for two-week spell with the Chennai Super Kings with whom he will earn US dollars 1.5million on a pro-rata basis depending on the number of matches he plays.

Some observers have voiced concerns over the wisdom of England players participating in the competition - Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Owais Shah and Ravi Bopara will also take part - ahead of a summer that features test series against West Indies and Australia and also the ICC World Twenty20 tournament.

However, Flintoff, who has only recently returned from injury, believes his time in the IPL will actually prove beneficial to his fitness.

"It's been frustrating with the hip injury, thigh injury and getting hit on the thumb just before the end of the tour of the West Indies and I think the IPL will be good for me," he stated.

"There are a few people putting it down but keeping playing should help me out a lot. When I stop and start is when my body is at its most vulnerable.

"I know I'm only bowling four overs a game, but it will give me a chance to work on my game in between games going into a Test series and I will be working with top facilities out in South Africa.

"It is a long schedule and everyone is looking forward to the Ashes and making sure everyone is fit for that but I've stressed all along that we have to perform in all the games we're playing.

"From my point of view, although it's been frustrating I've had four or five weeks when I've not played because I've been injured so I'm probably fresher than a lot of the lads.

"If I'm asked whether I'm jaded in September I'll probably be on my knees but at this moment in time I'm looking forward to getting on with it."

Spying

Additionally, Flintoff - who boasts MS Dhoni, Matthew Hayden and Jacob Oram amongst his Chennai team-mates - is hopeful that the competition will also allow him to gain vital knowledge on some of the world's top Twenty20 performers and their methods ahead of the World Twenty20 which gets underway in England in June.

"The Twenty20 World Cup is going to be huge and international Twenty20 cricket is going to become bigger and bigger," he added.

"While I'm out there I'll be watching the likes of Dhoni, who has played a lot of it, and Hayden who had a good IPL last year. I will be speaking to a few of the Indian guys and see if I can pick their brains.

"I think you'll find players helping each other out and talking to each other, but the flip side of that is that other sides have England team-mates so you have to be a bit cautious about what you're saying.

"Ultimately, it's all about playing for England and by passing on a bit of information about one of your players could be to the detriment of this team and that's something you can't do."