So once again, the English Cricket Board has shot itself in the proverbial foot in the run up to an Ashes
series.
Many may see the departure of Kevin Pietersen as England captain as being manufactured by the flamboyant batsman himself. Resigning from his lofty position while out of the country is, on the face of things, inexcusable. However, the reasons for Pietersen’s rash and unexpected decision go much deeper.
The reluctance of the ECB to create any solid plans for a lucrative competition similar to the Indian Premier League angered Pietersen. The personality and ego of the man require not only huge financial gain, but also an adoration from a worldwide audience. Imagine how it must feel for Pietersen to see the likes of Matthew Hayden and MS Dhoni smashing the ball into thousands of crazed sub-continent onlookers while he took on Glamorgan in a 4-day county championship game. It’s just not a Pietersen-esque environment.
Sportsman like Pietersen need to challenge themselves to be the best. They want to take on the best players in the world as regularly as possible. Test match cricket and ODI’s do satisfy this desire to a certain extent but the colorful, star-studded IPL took things a step further.
The ECB made a half hearted attempt to meet Pietersen halfway with the Stanford Super Series. But it was more like meeting Pietersen an eighth of the way. None of the England players seemed to enjoy themselves- they looked light years away from the joyous atmospheres of India.
The lack of modern thinking and tact from the ECB has unfortunately triggered the loss of an exciting captain, a promising coach in Peter Moores and has unsteadied the ship of the English dressing room.
So it is left to Andrew Strauss- a much more refined middle-class, typical English cricketing character, reminiscent of a very proper and old-fashioned RAF pilot- to pick up the pieces. He has a gentle introduction with the two Test series against the West Indies which will give him a chance to pick up experience of skippering a side at the highest level. After that comes the big one against Australia. England were arguably favourites before the debacle of yesterday.
Now, the odds may have shifted in the Aussies’ favour.
