BIRMINGHAM, England (Reuters) - England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff said he was not thinking about revenge for the humiliating 5-0 Ashes defeat by Australia in 2006-07.
Flintoff deputised as captain for the injured Michael Vaughan during that series in Australia.
"It was tough for a while afterwards but that is a long way off and there have been a lot of things happen in my life since 2006," Flintoff told reporters on Monday.
"So as for scarring I wouldn't say there is a great deal there. I'm just looking forward to playing. When you have missed as much cricket as I have and you come back into the side you want to enjoy it.
"I love playing cricket, it's been taken away from me at various points in my career so it's about cherishing playing every time you get an opportunity to do so, especially when you have got the three lions on."
Flintoff, 31, has played in 75 test matches, taking 218 wickets, scoring 3,645 runs and holding 51 catches. He was named man of the series after helping England to their first Ashes win for 18 years in 2005.
After a succession of injury problems he will test his fitness in a three-day warm-up game against Warwickshire starting on Wednesday before next week's first test against the Australians.
"I've had two years rehab since 2005 so it's been tough but the reason you do it is to put the England shirt back on and get the chance to play in an Ashes series," he said.
"And I'm not far away from that now. As you get older you don't want to miss much cricket because you don't know how much you have got left in you.
"When I was in the gym and trying to get fit again it was all about playing in the Ashes. I would have loved to play in the Twenty20 World Cup because it looked like a great tournament but the ultimate is the Ashes."
