Sourav Ganguly feels the England cricket team is vulnerable against India in the upcoming Test series in the absence of its star all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who makes a ‘huge difference’ to the home side.

“England are a good side. But we’re lucky that Flintoff is not fit. I think he makes a huge difference to the English team. It’s a beatable side. But Flintoff will really be missed,” Ganguly said.

“I’ve seen Michael Vaughan captaining the team differently without Flintoff,” he was quoted as saying by The Guardian on Thursday.

Ankle surgery
Flintoff is recuperating after an ankle surgery and is doubtful for the three-Test series beginning at Lord’s on July 19.

The former captain, who led India to a famous NatWest Series win five years ago, praised newcomers such as Kevin Pietersen and Monty Panesar under Vaughan’s captaincy.

“His (Vaughan’s) record is fabulous. I think he’s reaping the benefits of what Nasser (Hussain) did. Pietersen is brilliant, going to be a great, I think. Monty, he’s from my county, Northants, he’ll walk into any side in the world,” he said.

On a personal front, Ganguly, who survived the test of time during his time away from the Indian team last year, admitted he was under tremendous pressure to make a comeback and perform.

“It’s possible, that can happen (to be out of team). But when I came back into the side, I had huge pressure on me. I survived that. Then I survived the pressure of coming back into the one-day team. I don’t think any pressure can be more than that.”