Kevin Pietersen's Autobiography.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Well, in a few months now, it'll start to be forgotten. Which won't necessarily be a good thing because the ECB should show it can change, and try to be less aloof from the public and act like custodians of the game and not the owners of it. They have to engage honestly with their players, and not through unethical leaks via the press. They should, as Kevin says, bring the game closer to the public.

A start would be disclosure on their policy from KP's sacking as captain through to the donation of his private and confidential file to the press. Not just wait for a few wins to distract what's left of the public watching. Of course, that would expose Downton, Clarke and Flower, so it can't happen.

[sussexpob]

If Pietersen genuinely wanted to show he didn't deserve to be discarded by England he would have been better advised, as SP said, to play CC cricket for Surrey and show everyone he was still good enough to play at international level A century or two would have been a better course than the one he chose and incidentally wasn't very successful at.

People keep saying this. But he was told he wasn't going to play again. They decided he was the only thing that needed to be changed from the whitewash. He could have been beatified by the pope and it wouldn't have made any difference. They didn't drop him and say, go back to your county and prove us wrong. They said, you're toxic, don't come back.

Indeed. Downton went over and above his job role to sack him, Giles Clarke issued a rather insulting message to fans that they had to "get over it, its never happening", Whitaker was part of the sacking brigade and had just been promoted by his anti-KP hating boss and was never going to pick him, Giles basically came out and said he wanted to pick him but was then sacked and replace by someone who was a guaranteed KP hater......

KP could have scored more runs than Jack Hobbs did in his career, and he was never playing.

They didn't "drop" him, they took a specific route that was permanent and could not be overridden.

[Arthur Crabtree]

There might well have been a clamour from many sources for him to return or at least given him the personal satisfaction of showing what an error they'd made. Instead he chased the easy money in T20 cricket and made a pretty poor fist of that judging by his scoring record.

You can't sack him and then complain about what he does instead. He played T20 because England didn't want him. They had press conferences just to say they weren't going to pick him.

Interesting post Adi.

[Aidan11]

I get the feeling KP wont go away. Even after the initial reaction to the book his publicity machine - Piers - will probably keep things going thru Twitter.

A poor World Cup showing and the press will probably drag the recent event s up again.

[Aidan11]

There might well have been a clamour from many sources for him to return or at least given him the personal satisfaction of showing what an error they'd made. Instead he chased the easy money in T20 cricket and made a pretty poor fist of that judging by his scoring record.

You can't sack him and then complain about what he does instead. He played T20 because England didn't want him. They had press conferences just to say they weren't going to pick him.

Yes, whatever he's done he's entitled to earn a living and a lack of a central contract would leave a big hole. If he's in demand then why now?

[Alviro Patterson]

If Pietersen genuinely wanted to show he didn't deserve to be discarded by England he would have been better advised, as SP said, to play CC cricket for Surrey and show everyone he was still good enough to play at international level A century or two would have been a better course than the one he chose and incidentally wasn't very successful at.

What good would it have done though? He could have scored 2000 CC runs and it still wouldn't have earned him a recall. England will not have him back.

It would have shown KP was committed to red ball cricket, something which the ECB are advocates of. Promoting the IPL within the England setup, a competition which directly clashes with the County Championship does KP no favours.

[hopeforthebest]

If Pietersen genuinely wanted to show he didn't deserve to be discarded by England he would have been better advised, as SP said, to play CC cricket for Surrey and show everyone he was still good enough to play at international level A century or two would have been a better course than the one he chose and incidentally wasn't very successful at.

People keep saying this. But he was told he wasn't going to play again. They decided he was the only thing that needed to be changed from the whitewash. He could have been beatified by the pope and it wouldn't have made any difference. They didn't drop him and say, go back to your county and prove us wrong. They said, you're toxic, don't come back.

An occasional television interview after scoring a century for Surrey would have put egg on the faces of those who sat in judgement on him, a sweeter revenge than the process he has chosen and who knows, heads might have rolled by now. Maybe he avoided the CC because he recognised that his cricketing skills were diminished and dare not take the risk.

[meninblue]

Why KP would be very keen to play for ECB again after having been sacked when it was entirely not his fault. Also, there is so much criticism he gets from even England fans in spite of trying hard for his country and from management. Whereas the IPL franchisee praise KP to the extent that he is captaincy material and indeed they made him captain for Delhi Daredevils. KP has million of Indian fans and rare to find any Indian cricket fan who hates him. Given the drastic different response he gets for his skills from two different managements why would he not want to play in franchisee cricket. I personally saw that Indian fans at Wankhede enjoyed when Monty and KP were on boundary and even their success. No other England cricketers go so much support from fans. First of all you people don't want him so sacked him and then if he decides to go and play franchisee cricket where he is respected as captaincy material, world class player and loved by almost 95% of fans what is wrong with it. If they don't value something good, some other will.

[Aidan11]

Whatever KP does the ECB will stick their heads in the sand.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Don't get this argument at all. If he was dropped fair enough. But not if he'd been told his career was over. Especially after he'd been treated so badly.

I imagine he felt understandably resentful too.

[Arthur Crabtree]

An occasional television interview after scoring a century for Surrey would have put egg on the faces of those who sat in judgement on him, a sweeter revenge than the process he has chosen and who knows, heads might have rolled by now. Maybe he avoided the CC because he recognised that his cricketing skills were diminished and dare not take the risk.

Rather than just point out where he felt they had treated him badly? They ended his contract because they did't want him because of his attitude, not because he couldn't score enough runs.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Why KP would be very keen to play for ECB again after having been sacked when it was entirely not his fault. Also, there is so much criticism he gets from even England fans in spite of trying hard for his country and from management. Whereas the IPL franchisee praise KP to the extent that he is captaincy material and indeed they made him captain for Delhi Daredevils. KP has million of Indian fans and rare to find any Indian cricket fan who hates him. Given the drastic different response he gets for his skills from two different managements why would he not want to play in franchisee cricket. I personally saw that Indian fans at Wankhede enjoyed when Monty and KP were on boundary and even their success. No other England cricketers go so much support from fans. First of all you people don't want him so sacked him and then if he decides to go and play franchisee cricket where he is respected as captaincy material, world class player and loved by almost 95% of fans what is wrong with it. If they don't value something good, some other will.

No doubt if you get sacked from a company for which you have brought success over the years, probably unfairly, a highly lucrative position at another company who have always admired you, might seem like an attractive proposition. Rather than hanging around the people who fired you in the hope they change their minds...

Meanwhile, the manager in charge of the account that led to your dismissal gets a better job!

[Aidan11]

There is a collective noun for those at the head of the ECB but it won't get past the swear filter.

[meninblue]

Why KP would be very keen to play for ECB again after having been sacked when it was entirely not his fault. Also, there is so much criticism he gets from even England fans in spite of trying hard for his country and from management. Whereas the IPL franchisee praise KP to the extent that he is captaincy material and indeed they made him captain for Delhi Daredevils. KP has million of Indian fans and rare to find any Indian cricket fan who hates him. Given the drastic different response he gets for his skills from two different managements why would he not want to play in franchisee cricket. I personally saw that Indian fans at Wankhede enjoyed when Monty and KP were on boundary and even their success. No other England cricketers go so much support from fans. First of all you people don't want him so sacked him and then if he decides to go and play franchisee cricket where he is respected as captaincy material, world class player and loved by almost 95% of fans what is wrong with it. If they don't value something good, some other will.

No doubt if you get sacked from a company for which you have brought success over the years, probably unfairly, a highly lucrative position at another company who have always admired you, might seem like an attractive proposition. Rather than hanging around the people who fired you in the hope they change their minds...

Meanwhile, the manager in charge of the account that led to your dismissal gets a better job!

Not only sacked, they negatively publicized to each and every company giving an impression that he was the only culprit as far as team spirit and loss was concerned. Luckily, other companies (read IPL) knew only he was the most valued person in that company. I do not see a point in a cricketer making his comeback under a management in which he has no faith left whatsoever. I feel even Big Bash franchisee will pay him huge rather than any other England player. The patch up process if it happens one is okay, twice okay but in case of KP and ECB it was never ending fight. It was pointless for him to expect that he will some day be selected yet again after that sacking and given other past incidents. To fight it alone so many times for years and years with a group of people who he plays with daily is also pointless. It is good that he has skill sets of such high order and that he has taken his intrinsic value to such potential that it is seen by everyone in the world that matters to his cricketing career. I would say KP is a very good example of being a very skillful person whose success does not depends on few people. Skillset value should be like this.

I do feel that KP should not have sent texts, if at all he did, but Prior requiring apology from fielders is as bad for team spirit. if you have to punish KP for team spirit then punish him, but also do not forget to punish Prior and others. Sack everyone. Why choose only one person. And if for some reason you do not want to sack others then do not sack KP also. Be fair to everyone.Either take same action or do nothing at all as everyone did same mistake. He has been singled out which is very bad management. Also, it appears they used him as scapegoat giving impression that only he caused team spirit issues and that is why England lost Ashes and other series. Personally i feel power has been misused and KP has not been treated fairly.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Not only sacked, they negatively publicized to each and every company giving an impression that he was the only culprit as far as team spirit and loss was concerned. Luckily, other companies (read IPL) knew only he was the most valued person in that company. I do not see a point in a cricketer making his comeback under a management in which he has no faith left whatsoever.

Yet he did that over and over again. Most abjectly during the reintegration process before the India tour. And it seems he's be willing to do it again. I think it's hard to get away from the conclusion that playing international cricket means everything to him. Even when he had his child, and he wanted to cut back on playing ODIs, feeling he was playing too much cricket, he went back to playing it all rather than risk not having any of it.