Flower faces biggest test over the Pietersen conundrum as England prepare to gamble
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UPDATED:
09:44 GMT, 8 August 2012
How has it possibly come to this How have England found themselves in a situation where they will approach a Test they must win with all attention centred not on how they will beat South Africa but on the future of Kevin Pietersen
No wonder Andy Flower has not seemed himself during what was meant to be the clash of the best Test teams for the world No 1 status. All has not seemed right with England during this vital series and now we know why.
Make no mistake, Flower faces the biggest challenge of his highly successful reign as England team director in sorting this one out. How on earth does he ensure that his team are focused on winning at Lord’s next week when such an integral member of the side has become so disenfranchised
It does look as though England will pick Pietersen for the do-or-die date and will still offer him a contract to remain playing Test cricket beyond this season, even though Pietersen said so dramatically at Headingley that he cannot guarantee his future participation.
A man apart: Pietersen (right) keeps his distance from Trott, Bell and Strauss
It is understandable they still want to select a man who can raise his game to such a rarefied level, as he did spectacularly in the second Test, but at what cost would that be to the continued success of the team who rose so impressively to the top of the world It is proving a rocky ride at the top for England.
I feel as though I know Pietersen as well as anybody in the media but even I am confused. I just cannot put my finger on what his problem is. Take a look at the cricinfo website and watch the seven-minute press conference Pietersen gave late on Monday in Leeds and tell me if you can make sense of it.
Pietersen clearly did not want to give much away on what is gnawing at him but all he succeeded in doing was to send out a catalogue of mixed messages. It’s not about the money, he insisted. It’s not really about spending more time with his family. As Matt Prior said on Sunday: ‘I’m not sure Kevin really knows what he wants.’
Pietersen kept saying all will be revealed after Lord’s and we can only hope it is.
There certainly seems tension between him and the other England players, which I do not think has been the case until now. He seemed happier to spend time with the South African players than he did the England ones when both teams were on the outfield. And his priority when he reached the best of his 21 Test centuries on Saturday was clearly acknowledging his wife, Jessica, in the stands rather than the home dressing room.
Explosive: Pietersen gives his interview to Jonathan Agnew after the Headingley Test
It is even said that part of Pietersen’s problem is his fury over the fake Twitter account which parodies his ego, one that is often so cuttingly believable that someone close to the team must be behind it. Pietersen does not see the funny side and apparently has not liked being teased over it.
His relationship with his employers at the ECB, which plummeted when he lost the captaincy three years ago over the Peter Moores saga, is at an all-time low, too. Towards the end of that press conference Pietersen accused the ECB of leaking details of private meetings, specifically his hopes of missing part of next year’s Test series against New Zealand to play a full Indian Premier League campaign.
That is a serious accusation and Flower and Hugh Morris, the man in charge of Team England, will have to decide whether things have become so bad that Pietersen’s position is untenable. Clearly they do not believe it has yet but there are sure to be more tense meetings before Sunday’s announcement of England’s team for the final Test.
Maybe we can also see now why England attempted to rush Ravi Bopara back into the Lions side for the game against Australia A at Old Trafford so soon after the domestic issue surfaced which led him to pull out of the second Test. Perhaps they were hoping to prove Bopara’s readiness to be rushed back at Lord’s if England suddenly needed another batsman in Pietersen’s absence.
That went out of the window when Bopara pulled out of that side at the last moment following an animated conversation with national selector Geoff Miller.
On the attack: Pietersen in IPL action for Royal Challengers Bangalore
England talked of creating a legacy as one of the best teams of all time when they rose to No 1 by thrashing India last year. Yet they have lost five out of 10 Tests since and will lose that top-dog status if they do not beat the formidable South Africans at Lord’s. With a winter series in India to come they could be sliding back towards mid-table if they are not careful.
Will Pietersen be with them this winter in his favourite cricketing country It is anybody’s guess. What is beyond doubt is that it would be a crying shame if this is the end of his seven-year rollercoaster ride with his adopted country. Mike Atherton, one of the most respected observers in the game, said it is difficult to imagine anyone scoring a better century than the one Pietersen produced at Leeds.
Does he really want to give all that up when he is one century away from the England Test record of 22 and 3,000 runs short of his 10,000 target And all because he wants to play in the whole of the IPL, and earn his full $2million contract with Delhi, as the leading players from other countries are allowed to do.
The ECB are adamant they will not compromise their early season Test series even though we know the Kiwis will arrive next May with a team shorn of their IPL players.
Can something give It is doubtful but Flower will not want to give up on a batsman capable, to quote the fake Twitter KP, of genuine cricketing genius. It will be a gamble if England pick Pietersen next week and beyond but it is one they are prepared to take.
