Andrew Symonds may become freelance Twenty20 specialist, gets flooded with offers

According to Symonds' agent, Matt Fearon, the player was struggling in recent times to cope with the regimented team guidelines and was extremely upset with Cricket Australia's decision to send him home.

Fearson said Symonds met with Michael Brown, Cricket Australia's chief operating officer, in Brisbane on Monday, where he was informed he would not be offered another central contract.

However, the wayward yet extremely talented all-rounder has overcome the disappointment and is setting new goals, Fearon said.

According to Fearon, Symonds, who turns 34 today and is expected to announce his retirement from international cricket on Wednesday, is mulling to project himself as the world's first freelance Twenty20 specialist player and could feasibly participate in four domestic 20-over tournaments across the globe next year, including England's P20 competition.

"The thing he has learned in the last few months is that he loves playing his cricket, and he loves playing it with people he fits in with. The Twenty20 route is an option, but there are still a lot of unknowns. I suppose Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist have demonstrated that you can be successful in Twenty20 cricket for a long time. That might be something he wants to concentrate on," Fearon said.

Symonds is already playing for Deccan Chargers, which had paid $1.35 million for his services at the first IPL auction - the most for any non-Indian player at the time, and has helped the team win the second edition of the tournament.

Fearon also said Symonds is being flooded with offers and could earn up to $120,000 for less than two months' work in South Africa's domestic 50- and 20-over leagues.

Symonds' home state, Queensland, is also seeking to keep him on their books, and speculation in England is rife that the controversial allrounder could join the county ranks in the near future.

Not surprising as Symonds, whose absence was felt by Australia when the latter crashed out of the ICC World Twenty20 on Saturday after losing to Sri Lanka in the group matches, is a hard hitting batsman, brilliant fielder and a bowler capable of both medium pace and spin and is a captain's dream in this format.

According to Fearon, Symonds is "no longer a good fit" in the Australian team as he has not been able to cope with the changes taking place in it.

"He just hasn't been able to change with it. He was under enormous pressure to adjust. He no longer felt like he was part of the team unit and has probably felt that way for some time. He has really been outside his comfort zone. It's a great shame because, in his own way, he really was committed to playing cricket for Australia," the agent said.

"He definitely wants to continue playing cricket, and he has tried his hardest for that to be with Cricket Australia," Fearon said.

However, it is time for Symonds to move on and focus on his personal goals, Fearon said. "It's fair to say he's constantly sought after from many regions, both prior to this happening (drink-related problem) and currently," Fearon told AAP. "They are areas we haven't explored before because he's always been focused on playing international cricket. They're options for him if he chooses to do that."

"There's no doubt he's looking at continuing to play cricket and there are good opportunities there for him. But it will be about enjoyment rather than 'this is where I can make the most money,'" he said.

"At this stage his focus is to surround himself with people he enjoys and support him and have the right influence on him," he added.

Agrees former Queensland teammate and Test wicketkeeper Ian Healy. According to Healy, Symonds' recidivist actions over the past several years indicate that he may have fallen out of love with cricket and was perhaps "just sick" of the discipline and pressure that come with being in the national squad.

"I'm not sure whether Symmo wants to play cricket or be bound by contracts or be bound by the Cricket Australia structure," Healy said.

"I sense that he might be seeking the freedom that Indian Premier League and maybe an English county stint might offer him," he added.