Can England recover from http://www.senore.com/Cricket/KP-Pietersen-c1806’s loss? – Opinion – Part Two
Continued from the previous part…
The right-hander has an amazing record in all the three formats of the game. In the 86 Tests he has played so far, the great batsman is nearing seven thousand runs and will look to score many more as his sole concentration for http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013 will be the longer
version of the sport now.
Pietersen is averaging 41.84 and 37.93 runs per innings in ODIs and T20 Internationals respectively, which are extra-ordinary stats for a top-order batsman.
England have a number of young talented batsmen coming through the ranks of county cricket but most former cricketers believe that it will not be possible for anyone of them to fill the void left by the legend’s retirement.
KP lit up the fifth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) with some extra-ordinary performances for http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Delhi-c780 Daredevils. The tall batsman’s hundred against Deccan Chargers will always be remembered as one of the best T20 knocks.
The 32-year-old’s constant desire to play the cash-rich league has always been a point of concern for the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). On top of that, the 32-year-old batsman wanted to keep playing T20 internationals but according to the board’s
contract, a player should be available for both 50-overs version and T20s, or none.
There is a school of thought among the cricketing fraternity that the board should have softened its stance to retain the batsman’s services in the coloured kits.
The former Australian cricketer, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Shane-Keith-Warne-c89672, believes that the ECB is responsible for Pietersen’s early retirement from limited-overs internationals and expressed that the great batsman’s absence will be an irreplaceable loss for the sport.
One of the greatest players of the history of the game thinks that the ECB should have made efforts to stop Pietersen from making a hasty decision. Warne is of the opinion that players like Pietersen are not born every other day and officials must do their
best to prolong their careers.
“It staggers me and I'm very surprised that the ECB didn't try and negotiate that better, drop their egos and say, okay we understand this, we want to keep our best players playing all the time. I think it's just a bit too much ego for my liking from the
ECB. Who wouldn't want Kevin Pietersen in your side? He's a match-winner and he puts bums on seats because people love watching him play," Warne expressed.
While talking about the hectic international schedule, the former leg-spinner predicts that more and more players will start to pick and choose between the different formats of the game in future.
The legendary cricketer added, "People might give up more one-day cricket or they might give up Twenty20."
It is a pity that limited-overs internationals lost one of the greatest batsmen of the modern-era at the peak of his career. With his ability to strike the ball hard, Pietersen had won a huge number of fans, not just in England,
but all across the globe. Those supporters are still in a state of shock as they wanted to see their favourite batsman play for some more years.
However, his retirement gives food for thought to the cricket officials as they must understand that it is extremely crucial to take care of the game’s heroes, if cricket is to maintain its charm in the coming years.
Lastly, the ICC’s role has to be questioned as well, as it has failed to resist against franchise cricket and IPL continues to influence the careers of high-profile players.
Disclaimer: Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely of the author and do not represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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