Kevin Pietersen's Autobiography.

[SaintPowelly]

But in his book, he says he wants to play for England again, which contradicts his reasons for not playing LVCC.

[Arthur Crabtree]

To that end, there is a page where KP contemplates his caps on knowing he won't play for England again. It's quite sentimental, and to be a bit cruel, slightly absurd. But touching nonetheless, the fetishism of your England cap. They get one for every 25 games.

'I picked up my first Test cap, something I treasure more than anything I've had from the game. What a journey together.... I will never throw you in the air again. It was a small but very sad moment.'

KP spends a lot of time saying he is wrong and has made many mistakes. Usually he thinks for lack of life experience, which he thinks didn't prepare him sufficiently for the captaincy. He refers to conversations with Steve Harmison and being unable to understand his homesickness, KP having left SA at nineteen. But understanding when he had a family himself. He regrets what he said about the quota system in SA, and for trying too hard to ingratiate himself to his new country at the expense of his roots.

Of course, that makes you wonder if he will regret his activities now.

There is a sense of him being like a stateless Graham Greene character. Unable to quite understand the customs of the rulers at the ECB. Carrying around small tokens of the life he left behind.

And so far, cricket is a just the sound of distant gunfire. The book is all inside his head.

[Arthur Crabtree]

But in his book, he says he wants to play for England again, which contradicts his reasons for not playing LVCC.

Pretty sure he knows that can't happen while Giles Clarke is there. Playing for England is something he never stopped wanting. But it's hardly realistic. He's said in interviews that if the ECB gave an indication they'd consider him, he'd try and do whatever it took to get back in the side.

[SaintPowelly]

But in his book, he says he wants to play for England again, which contradicts his reasons for not playing LVCC.

Pretty sure he knows that can't happen while Giles Clarke is there. Playing for England is something he never stopped wanting. But it's hardly realistic. He's said in interviews that if the ECB gave an indication they'd consider him, he'd try and do whatever it took to get back in the side.

That works both ways though, why not score as many as possible for Surrey and say to the selectors "this is what I can do", there were 4 day games with KP in the country that he didn't play in, he was video'd/photo'd at the Oval before some of them, thats just obsurd not playing in them.

I'm not criticising him for going to the IPL, the Caribbean league I feel was a dumb move, and not playing for Surrey whilst he was in the country doing nothing is insane.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Because they told him they weren't going to pick him... It wasn't a runs related sacking.

I remember when Don Revie was sacked as England manager, and he went to coach in Saudi Arabia, the press were appalled. He had been sacked, but they acted like a life after being on England duty was inconceivable. Almost like they actually expected him to throw himself onto a sword in Trafalgar Square, draped in a St George's cross. Bobby Robson got the same sort of treatment.

That's not a realistic sentiment, but it is at play even today. Why do sports people continually get compared to soldiers, as if, in some alternative, symbolic way, they should die for their country. People resent them their choices. The possibility of a different, possibly better life.

When we fall in love (and people have that depth of passion about their country) and break up, we resent the life our partner has after we have gone.

[meninblue]

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.

I think there was some statement from KP that he would not like to play under same management or coach or captain. His international career is almost over unless a miracle happens at the management as well as player level.

[hopeforthebest]

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.

You have a much better ability to read minds that I, couldn't it be that they looked at his recent record with the bat and his injury record so their decision was a combination of several things.

[SaintPowelly]

This book isn't about a poor bully victim telling his story, its about KP trying to get the last word in and do as much damage as possible to those who rejected him, if he really wanted to play for England again, he would of NEVER wrote this book.

When we fall in love (and people have that depth of passion about their country) and break up, we resent the life our partner has after we have gone.

If this is the analogy that you want to use, then KP must be the type that murders his ex because "if I can't have her, no-one can"

[hopeforthebest]

Because they told him they weren't going to pick him... It wasn't a runs related sacking.

I remember when Don Revie was sacked as England manager, and he went to coach in Saudi Arabia, the press were appalled. He had been sacked, but they acted like a life after being on England duty was inconceivable. Almost like they actually expected him to throw himself onto a sword in Trafalgar Square, draped in a St George's cross. Bobby Robson got the same sort of treatment.

That's not a realistic sentiment, but it is at play even today. Why do sports people continually get compared to soldiers, as if, in some alternative, symbolic way, they should die for their country. People resent them their choices. The possibility of a different, possibly better life.

When we fall in love (and people have that depth of passion about their country) and break up, we resent the life our partner has after we have gone.

His passion for country has returned to South Africa according to Pietersen himself.

[Arthur Crabtree]

You have a much better ability to read minds that I, couldn't it be that they looked at his recent record with the bat and his injury record so their decision was a combination of several things.

I'm not reading their minds. I'm taking them at their word. It's reading their minds to think his run scoring was a factor, because they never said that. I assume it was a factor, but I wouldn't try and put words in their mouths....

[Gingerfinch]

Have you bought the book yet, Arthur?

[Arthur Crabtree]

His passion for country has returned to South Africa according to Pietersen himself.

As I said above, he regrets denying his roots when he came to England, and the tattoo. But he loves the UK, and had a right to play cricket for England. he took the role of England player more seriously than many have over the years, in terms of preparation. Playing for England clearly meant a hell of a lot to him, and he shed a lot of dignity in order to do so.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Have you bought the book yet, Arthur?

Yes. I've given a couple of impressions of it as I've gone along.

[hopeforthebest]

In 2012 KP was reintegrated into the England team primarily because Cook believed he needed him and so it proved in India when his batting played an important role in winning that series. However in 2013 his performances fell away so much that in 23 innings he managed only one century and six half centuries. If that didn't make it easy for them to decide that they no longer needed him I'll be amazed. The chances are that if it had been 6 centuries and 1 half century he'd still have been an England player.

[SaintPowelly]

His passion for country has returned to South Africa according to Pietersen himself.

As I said above, he regrets denying his roots when he came to England, and the tattoo. But he loves the UK, and had a right to play cricket for England. he took the role of England player more seriously than many have over the years, in terms of preparation. Playing for England clearly meant a hell of a lot to him, and he shed a lot of dignity in order to do so.

Calling your captain the SA equivelant of a c*** to the South Africans would suggest otherwise.