PTI
  
London, May 26: Former batsman Geoff Boycott says England players refrained from criticising the captaincy of Andrew Flintoff in the drawn Test against Sri Lanka as they were scared of losing their places in the team.

Writing in his column for 'Daily Telegraph', Boycott said no player had been brave enough to come out in the open against Flintoff.

"I wasn't surprised to find so many players coming to the defence of Andrew Flintoff over the last week. I would expect them to support a colleague, especially the captain, who has a say in team selection," he wrote.

"England's players have a vested interest, so nobody dare come out and admit that they weren't as focused as they should have been. Who is going to be brave enough to say that Flintoff could have moved the fielders around more, or pressurised the batsmen with a bat-pad catcher or a leg gully? And God forbid that anyone might suggest he should have given Monty Panesar more overs!" Boycott said any player stating the obvious would have committed "career suicide".

Not sparing the coach either, he said Fletcher put loyalty to the team above everything, "even above common sense and honesty.

"So for anyone to make any slight criticism of the team or another individual would be fatal for their Test future." He said if the players were really truthful to themselves they would admit that they had not played Sri Lanka with the same intensity, desire, commitment and will to win that they showed against Australia last summer.