The enigma that is Kevin Pietersen

[shankycricket]

http://sports.ndtv.com/cricket/news/ite ... um=twitter

Not looking very good.

[OffStumpYorker]

http://sports.ndtv.com/cricket/news/item/195470-andy-flower-feels-pietersens-plight-is-sad?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Not looking very good.

Sounds like flower is not wanting to predujice any discussions and using a dead bat saying there are a lot of discussions to be had.

Heres a quote from the BBC article about the squads (http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/19324501)

England coach Flower told BBC Sport: "When we have time we will begin resolving these issues one way or another. This is not just an issue between the player and the captain, there are bigger issues at heart.

"The text issues have to be investigated so that we know what situation we are dealing with. We are aware of some of the content but we have to understand the content to move on in a proper, healthy fashion."

Asked if a decision had been made on whether to offer Pietersen a new central contract, Flower added: "We have to deal with some of these other issues before a decision can be made on central contracts and who gets offered them."

basically a non-commital answer, I suspect KP will spend 12 months in coventry then be brought back gradually like a junior player.

[D/L]

I'd be surprised if Pietersen ever played for England again.

[from_the_stands]

A couple of South African born cricketers sharing a happier moment with their paws on the urn...

[OffStumpYorker]

A couple of South African born cricketers sharing a happier moment with their paws on the urn...

happy days, I was there, that was when there was calm in the dressing room and everyone enjoyed each others company (except cook who spent most of his at the crease avoiding the dressing room).

[Gingerfinch]

That's a great photo for a caption competition!

[hopeforthebest]

Half of Pietersen's problem may be solved by all the knives sticking out of Strauss's back.

[OffStumpYorker]

Strauss is thinking : 'So glad I stuck by you'
while KP is Thinking : 'Smile now you doos, but when SA get to england, i'll get revenge for taking my job'

[Aidan11]

I see KP is at the crease now in Surrey's CB40 game.

Hopefully there was no booing today given the emotional nature of the game.

[OffStumpYorker]

I see KP is at the crease now in Surrey's CB40 game.

Hopefully there was no booing today given the emotional nature of the game.

Glamorgan dont have a Left arm spinner do they?

[yorker_129-7]

Maybe England and South Africa could play each other for the burning remnants of KPs ego when he's dropped from his IPL side next year having not played any professional cricket for 9 months? Go up like the Hindenburg, it will.

[ddb]

Maybe England and South Africa could play each other for the burning remnants of KPs ego when he's dropped from his IPL side next year having not played any professional cricket for 9 months? Go up like the Hindenburg, it will.

And I'll bump this post when KP is retained by DD and rivals Dhoni in sponsorship next year.

[mikesiva]

Maybe England and South Africa could play each other for the burning remnants of KPs ego when he's dropped from his IPL side next year having not played any professional cricket for 9 months? Go up like the Hindenburg, it will.

And I'll bump this post when KP is retained by DD and rivals Dhoni in sponsorship next year.

What's England's loss will be the IPL's gain....

I wouldn't worry about what KP does between now and the IPL. If England don't want him, I'm willing to bet a team in the Big Bash League in Australia will take him on board for the months of December and January. Then, come February or March, he can warm up for the IPL by playing some T20 matches in Bangladesh and South Africa.

A purse of 1.3 million to play an entire season of the IPL will ensure KP is fit and ready to play....

[mikesiva]

Ah, the hazards of staging a series when the IPL is going on....

The WICB learnt the hard way to accommodate the plans of Chris Gayle, Sunil Narine and Marlon Samuels to play in the IPL, instead of creating confrontations they couldn't win. New Zealand will also allow any player who wants to play in the IPL instead of touring England in early May to do so next year, much as the Windies did this year.

So, they've learnt not to fight against the IPL, and pretend that it doesn't exist. So have the Sri Lankans....

It's just England who persist in fighting this battle now. Kevin Pietersen is the first casualty, and he won't be the last. No matter what anyone says, KP's absence will felt, so the IPL has already won its clash of fixtures with England in May, as far as KP's career is concerned. It's the IPL's gain and England's loss....

The IPL clashes with the English home season, not with the West Indian home season or the Sri Lankan one. They aren't fighting a battle, they are playing Tests when they can. If the IPL was held in October, we would be able to accommodate it easily. But it isn't and the ECB have to protect the English game, they can't reduce the number of home internationals for the IPL.

It clashed with the West Indies, Sri Lankan and New Zealand team selection, when those teams were 'invited' to take part in tours of England that started in the first week of May. That is where the West Indies' problems with Gayle started, and that was at the heart of some of the disputes SLC had with their star players. Now, NZ, SL and WI have learnt to allow their players to play in the IPL and skip any tour of England in May. That is why Gayle is back in the fold, and maybe it might be a good idea for England to consider doing the same to avoid any more fallout in future.

[m@tt]

Ah, the hazards of staging a series when the IPL is going on....

The WICB learnt the hard way to accommodate the plans of Chris Gayle, Sunil Narine and Marlon Samuels to play in the IPL, instead of creating confrontations they couldn't win. New Zealand will also allow any player who wants to play in the IPL instead of touring England in early May to do so next year, much as the Windies did this year.

So, they've learnt not to fight against the IPL, and pretend that it doesn't exist. So have the Sri Lankans....

It's just England who persist in fighting this battle now. Kevin Pietersen is the first casualty, and he won't be the last. No matter what anyone says, KP's absence will felt, so the IPL has already won its clash of fixtures with England in May, as far as KP's career is concerned. It's the IPL's gain and England's loss....

The IPL clashes with the English home season, not with the West Indian home season or the Sri Lankan one. They aren't fighting a battle, they are playing Tests when they can. If the IPL was held in October, we would be able to accommodate it easily. But it isn't and the ECB have to protect the English game, they can't reduce the number of home internationals for the IPL.

It clashed with the West Indies, Sri Lankan and New Zealand team selection, when those teams were 'invited' to take part in tours of England that started in the first week of May. That is where the West Indies' problems with Gayle started, and that was at the heart of some of the disputes SLC had with their star players. Now, NZ, SL and WI have learnt to allow their players to play in the IPL and skip any tour of England in May. That is why Gayle is back in the fold, and maybe it might be a good idea for England to consider doing the same to avoid any more fallout in future.

"Summer" and "home" were the key words. We have a limited amount of time to fit in two series each of Tests and ODIs with a few T20s scattered around. The England team comes first, not a foreign domestic league (I appreciate the money, publicity, viewing figures, overseas players etc make it more than that, but it is still a foreign domestic league). And the paying fans in our country deserve matches and the chance to see our international players represent England in our home stadia - they shouldn't have a reduced international summer so that players can go abroad. And if the same amount of matches remain, they will be cramped into a smaller time slot, increasing the likelihood of injury and fatigue.

In the winter, this is much easier. In 2010, the Ashes started in late November. This past Winter, the tour didn't start until January. This winter, we're in India in September. There is flexibility.