Rocky Flintoff, the 16-year-old son of former England all-rounder Andrew, has become the youngest player to hit a century for the England Under-19 side during a Test match with Sri Lanka .
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Flintoff was unbeaten on 82 overnight after Sri Lanka posted 153 in the first innings and he brought up his century in the first session at the College Ground in Cheltenham on Thursday.
The middle-order batter was dismissed soon after for 106 in a knock that included nine boundaries and two sixes. Captain Hamza Shaikh also brought up a century (107) as England were dismissed for 477 in reply to Sri Lanka's first innings of 153.
England Under-19 coach Michael Yardy said: "He's a lovely lad around the group, but when it comes to his batting and fielding, he switches on. He's a normal teenage lad around the group, but when he gets out in the middle he's more like a 25-year-old.
"Rocky scored a hundred against the invitation XI and really celebrated and that's what you want. You want it to mean something to players. Whenever you represent your country and make a hundred, it should feel special.
"He's a young lad and we want him to show that passion, desire and emotion when they do something special. He did that today and it will mean even more to him because his parents were on the ground to see him do it."
Flintoff's stock has been on the rise in recent months after he became the third-youngest player to score a century in the Second Eleven Championship in April, breaking his father's record for Lancashire that stood for 30 years.
The 16-year-old signed his first professional contract with the county last month and he also played for the England Under-19 one-day international side in a three-match series against Sri Lanka.
His father Andrew was one of cricket's greatest all-rounders with over 7,000 runs and nearly 400 wickets across tests and ODIs.
He was England's hero in the 2005 Ashes Test series where his 402 runs and 24 wickets helped his side win a closely-fought series 2-1.
That team was captained by Michael Vaughan, whose 18-year-old son Archie Vaughan is also playing alongside Flintoff in the Test against Sri Lanka.
Australian Associated Press
