Mike Hussey expects Andrew Flintoff to be fit by the time the battle for the Ashes gets under way in early July.

The Australian batsman admits the Flintoff's absence from the ICC World Twenty20 competition after failing to recover from knee surgery will be a "massive blow" to England's chances of glory.

But the 31-year-old is convinced Flintoff will be ready to resume action when the main business of the summer is on the menu.

And he has also been impressed with the way England have rebuilt their squad and have been revitalised with their Test and one-day success over the West Indies during the past few weeks.

Hussey, speaking after the Australians flew into Birmingham for the ICC Twenty20, said: "There is no doubt that Flintoff's absence is a big blow for England.

"He is a world-class player. He has shown over many years how good he has been. That is a huge loss for England.

"With bat and ball, he has shown how destructive he can be but the thing about England is they are building their depth quite well at the moment.

"There have been a lot of new players coming into the England set-up and doing quite well and showing they are good enough to play at international level. That bodes well for England.

"I am sure Flintoff will be fresh for the Ashes. He has been a great competitor over a long period of time and in last Ashes series here in 2005, he was particularly good.

"I am sure he will be everything to make sure he is right for the first Test."

It'll be close this time

Hussey insists Australia will not take England lightly and is anticipating a much closer affair than the 5-0 drubbing they handed out Down Under two and a half years ago.

He said: "We have been very impressed with England. We know they have got a good team, particularly in English conditions. They play very well.

"I think we are in for a huge challenge this summer but we have got a great squad as well.

"I think we have got a very good squad, a mixture of young fresh faces like Phil Hughes who is so exciting, a lot of talent, and has done well in his initial time as this level.

"We have some good experienced players as well.

"Hopefully that blend will help us but I think what really matters isn't whether you are young or old but doing the business out in the middle is all that counts.

"We have a lot of confidence out of winning the Test series in South Africa. I think it will be a very close series, very challenging for both teams."