Strauss deserves credit but ECB have betrayed KP’s trust
Those people who are up in arms over Andrew strauss’s stance on Kevin Pietersen must have very short memories.
This is the man, remember, who has fallen out with just about every county and province he has played at; sent texts to the opposition while playing for england criticising his captain; slagged off just about everybody in his book; accused the opening bowlers he wants to rejoin in the england side of bullying and went on Australian TV to criticise all things english cricket. And, also remember Pietersen was on a final warning during the last Ashes because of ‘textgate’.
Anyone in charge of any team, especially a new young one like england’s, would have to think long and hard about re-introducing a character like this.
Yet strauss talks about trust and we have to remember that trust works both ways. Yes, the eCB have lost trust in Pietersen but he is entitled to have lost trust in them having been encouraged by the new chairman Colin Graves to give up his Indian Premier League contract and return to county cricket.
Pietersen deserves huge credit for taking the chairman at his word, returning to surrey and then scoring a triple century for them. he can justifiably ask, ‘I have done what you said. Why have you moved the goalposts now?’
I would have done things differently to strauss. If I was coming into that job, I would have wanted everyone — including Pietersen — to begin with a clean slate.
so I would have said to Kevin, ‘oK, you should have come back to domestic cricket last year but better late than never. There is no place in our middle order for you at the moment, but keep on scoring runs and showing the right attitude and you will be considered if and when a vacancy occurs.’
But credit to strauss for not taking the easy, populist option. he could have been swayed by the loud minority on social media but he is determined to do what he believes is in the best long-term interests of english cricket. I’m sure there are many who agree with him but we tend not to hear from them. Verdict: Too complicated to just say in or out. Sympathy for Strauss but the ECB have behaved diabolically.