“It is highly unfortunate that we have to lose his services this way. He has already taken a flight to London,” a Chennai team official said.

Not about the money

Flintoff’s skipper in the tournament, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, said that Flintoff’s contribution should not be seen in the context of his financial value. “I don’t think we should judge him like that. We should look at his value addition to the team,” Dhoni said. “I think he’s a tremendous cricketer. He has contributed to the team in many ways.”

With Pietersen also continuing to struggle in the tournament, the performances of the IPL’s two top picks have been extremely disappointing as the tournament’s first week comes to a close. Pietersen, who is playing for the Bangalore Royal Challengers, has scored 43 runs in four matches at an average of 10.75. The Bangalore team have lost three out of four matches under his captaincy, and he has also been reprimanded.

With the 28-year-old former England skipper available only for four more IPL matches, he has his task cut out to avoid being included in season two’s flop list, in which Flintoff’s name has already been scribbled.