To KP or not KP?
England’s cricketers enter a must-win game in disarray. They know that only victory will prevent South Africa from leapfrogging them to the top of the world Test rankings. However, that has been overshadowed by the shock omission of the home team’s only player of undeniable star quality, Kevin Pietersen.
The Surrey batsman was dropped after failing to comply with a request from his employer, the England and Wales Cricket Board, to confirm or deny that text messages he sent to members of the South African team contained derogatory comments about his captain, Andrew Strauss, and head coach, Andy Flower. Pietersen was unable, or unwilling, to provide an answer in the time allotted, and so was jettisoned.
KP has been at the center of controversy all season and his comments at a news conference after the second Test won’t have smoothed troubled waters. “It’s not easy being me in this England dressing room,” he told the assembled media, while hinting that the Lord’s Test might be his last five-day game for his adopted country.
His demotion was greeted with delight and dismay in equal measure: The KP haters are cock-a-hoop, while the raters are incandescent with rage.
His supporters — and there are many millions of them — feel their man is the victim of double standards. They point to the fact that he has never publicly criticized a teammate, while Graeme Swann, who made some forthright comments about Pietersen in his autobiography, and James Anderson, who appeared to take a swipe at the South Africa-born star in his newspaper column on Sunday, have escaped public censure.
His detractors say that the man is toxic and has been the only constant factor in a series of disputes with various teams and governing bodies throughout his career. Now, it seems, England has decided to develop a couple of youngsters in readiness for next year’s Ashes’ series, as an insurance policy in case Pietersen is unavailable … for whatever reason.
The ECB may have shot itself in the foot. If included in the starting eleven, Yorkshire’s Jonny Bairstow will be playing only his fourth game at the highest level, while the other tyro, James Taylor of Nottinghamshire, will be playing his second.
Although both are promising talents, neither will cause Graeme Smith or his bowlers any loss of sleep. South Africa is likely to field an unchanged team, ensuring that at least one Petersen — albeit one minus an “i”, Alviro — will tread the hallowed north London turf.
England needs to decide on the balance of its team. The pacemen have been way off the mark so far this series. Swann, dropped for Headingley, seems to have misplaced his spinning mojo, but will almost certainly be recalled for this crucial game. If the selectors decide to break with recent habits and play four quicks plus the offspinner, Bairstow is the batsman most likely to miss out.
Pietersen’s absence means England’s chances of winning the game have been dealt a severe blow, and his specter will loom over Lord’s as Banquo’s ghost did MacBeth’s mealtimes. This story has a long way to run. Contact the writer at paultomic@chinadaily.com.cn