Andrew Flintoff has urged his England team-mates to focus all their energies on the ICC Champions Trophy and not the forthcoming Ashes tour to Australia.

England were beaten finalists in the competition on home soil two years ago and their skipper believes, despite some indifferent one-day form this summer, that they are capable of going one better this time round.

However, he insists his side cannot afford to entertain thoughts of their subsequent Ashes rematch with Australia if they are to emerge victorious.

"I have played in one ICC Trophy before and we got to the final. To have come so close, it hurts," Flintoff explained.

"We go out there to try to win the ICC tournament.

"A lot has been made of the Ashes afterwards and we know what a big winter it is but we have to address what is in front of us first, and that is this tournament.

"It is going to be tough. We have got Australia and India in the group. But for the one-day side to come back and draw 2-2 with Pakistan in the summer was a great effort.

"They showed signs of improvement but we need to work on consistency. We have shown we can compete with the best sides in the world and we can beat the best sides in the world.

"But we need to do it on a regular basis.

"The next few weeks will be a great opportunity for the lads to stake a claim with the World Cup coming up.

"It is an exciting challenge. We go to India to win cricket matches."

SkySports