It's Tough Being Me - The Kevin Pietersen Story

[GIMH]

Well he should be ****ed off as captain then. Or shot.

FFS, just don't say anything and let the media go around and around with this for a while before it eventually goes away.

England's strategy should be to shut up, wait for the cricket to start again, play **** at the ODI World Cup as always, and then win their next test match and make it clear they have moved on.

I agree he shouldn't have done it, but if the ECB haven't told him to do it then at the very least they would have given him permission

Pietersen book tarnishes era - Cook - BBC Sport

 

[fredfertang]

I was watching a documentary on Channel 5 last night about JFK and I suddenly realised what's going on here - this is all just a carefully choreographed preliminary for KP to get down off his grassy knoll, be invited back in time for the World Cup, which England then win, and the whole thing becomes the top-selling cricket story ever told

 

[BoyBrumby]

Part of me does still wish the ECB would call Pietersen's bluff and invite him back (not least because he remains a joy to behold when the force is with him), it would at least stop all this nonsense about him being desperate to play for England again.

It's very much a "Satan having to don snow shoes for his commute to work" scenario though.

It does show how marginalised from the mainstream our sport has become that the most recognisable English cricketer for Joe Public isn't really a cricketer at all in any meaningful sense*. None of the incumbent squad are likely to be on Graham Norton anytime soon.

*Or English, etc.

 

[harsh.ag]

All right English cricket fans who think this whole thing is messing with English cricket as it stands now. Your point is firm and good.

But just for fun, try and see it this way. A young South African guy with huge ambitions and wonderful talent is attracted to England and is courted as well. He is a sort of mercenary for his pride. He does hugely well and is placed in the country's ATG pile ahead of legends like Denis Compton, Peter May, Herbert Sutcliffe, David Gower, not to mention others. He is then made captain, and his cozy relationship with everyone goes kaput. He is then divested of the captaincy, and plays under an administration which clearly sees him as a nuisance (and definitely too un-English) and would dearly love to throw him out but for his talent. The team then becomes a champion team with good players in good form including the man himself. Then comes along a series where they are severely thrashed, and the administration comes with their claws out on the guy, who was outspoken about his views (inside the dressing room only).

It's a tale of ambition, greed, and folly from all participants. KP was, in some ways, used and thrown aside. He has a right to say all this. Give the man a break. He came to an alien culture and achieved a lot. He was brilliant. And he should not have been dumped that way. He clearly loves batting, in spite of the horror of him not having played for Surrey this year. Of course that proves he is just a whiny bitch, and not that he may have been in a terrible mental state. Just give the man a break.

EDIT: He is clearly a very sensitive person. If we are always so kind to regular people being sensitive, why can't we afford the same empathy and space to Kevin Pietersen? I am not saying he is right. Just that we always act like we have such big hearts when it comes to being understanding of people. Let's be understanding of him. He is basically finished as an international cricketer. Let's just give him space to grieve and feel a bit sad for him. It shouldn't be that he has forfeited our quota of niceness just by calling out the English administration and its faults (from his perspective)

 

[BoyBrumby]

TBF many would argue being "un-English" has never hurt a cricketer looking to wear the three Lions, in fact many on CW have suggested the English selection panel is all too keen to harvest the fruit of other countries' trees. Three of our most recent call ups were born & raised in Australia, Barbados & Zimbabwe respectively.

I'd say it's less to do with being South African and more to do with being a precious ****.

 

[grecian]

Red-herring for most people on Cricketweb anyway. Most of us have got really ****ed off with the entire "South African" 2nd XI gags, and have been pretty vocal about it. Don't see it's a big deal at all.

I loved Robin Smith, and actually his brother who I thought should have played more for England. If you choose to play for England, you're English. Simple as that.

If only he did allow us all to grieve for his career, but he's not really done that at all, has he? Would love for us all to move on our merry way and thank him for the great moments in his career.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

I'm totally against any player representing a country other than the one they qualify for by birth. But that has nothing to do with my dislike of this tosser. I'm also against the idea that you have to make special allowances for supremely gifted players. He's all over the media with this feeble collection of tittle tattle and what makes it worse is some gullible fools even have sympathy with him based on the interviews he's given.

 

[harsh.ag]

TBF many would argue being "un-English" has never hurt a cricketer looking to wear the three Lions, in fact many on CW have suggested the English selection panel is all too keen to harvest the fruit of other countries' trees. Three of our most recent call ups were born & raised in Australia, Barbados & Zimbabwe respectively.

I'd say it's less to do with being South African and more to do with being a precious ****.

Red-herring for most people on Cricketweb anyway. Most of us have got really ****ed off with the entire "South African" 2nd XI gags, and have been pretty vocal about it. Don't see it's a big deal at all.

I loved Robin Smith, and actually his brother who I thought should have played more for England. If you choose to play for England, you're English. Simple as that.

If only he did allow us all to grieve for his career, but he's not really done that at all, has he? Would love for us all to move on our merry way and thank him for the great moments in his career.

I'm totally against any player representing a country other than the one they qualify for by birth. But that has nothing to do with my dislike of this tosser. I'm also against the idea that you have to make special allowances for supremely gifted players. He's all over the media with this feeble collection of tittle tattle and what makes it worse is some gullible fools even have sympathy with him based on the interviews he's given.

I don't know how all 3 of you managed to make my post about South Africans playing in England, but well done on that reductionism

 

[grecian]

I don't know how all 3 of you managed to make my post about South Africans playing in England, but well done on that reductionism

I think we covered the other points too. I.E. he's just shown with all this fuss what a divisive and moronic "devils spawn" the bloke is. Now your post could almost define reductionism.

You made an huge point about KP's struggles coming from South Africa to here. Yet it's a much travelled road, and has been done as long as I can remember. It's not a big deal either way. With Kolpak there seemed a time when more South Africans were playing in County cricket than people born in England.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

I don't know how all 3 of you managed to make my post about South Africans playing in England, but well done on that reductionism

My post wasn't in response to yours, it was in response to the other two.

 

[GIMH]

I'm totally against any player representing a country other than the one they qualify for by birth. But that has nothing to do with my dislike of this tosser. I'm also against the idea that you have to make special allowances for supremely gifted players. He's all over the media with this feeble collection of tittle tattle and what makes it worse is some gullible fools even have sympathy with him based on the interviews he's given.

What do you class as 'qualify by birth'?

 

[Prince EWS]

What do you class as 'qualify by birth'?

Given he said 'the one', I think he means that players should literally only be eligible for the country they're born in.

 

[Spark]

i didn't know nigel farage was on cw

 

[Lillian Thomson]

Just saw a rolling headline "Flower apologises for punches". Having no interest in Rugby League I didn't know what it referred to. There was just a brief second when I thought ..................hmmmm..................

 

[sledger]

ECB obviously haven't come out of this well but I'm amazed how anyone other than piers Morgan or Jessica from liberty x could think KP doesn't come off worse

I guess the thing is that everybody knows KP is a dire bloke, and rightly or wrongly, he clearly doesn't know any better than to air his dirty laundry in public. The ECB are, on the other hand, (at least supposedly) a respectable body who should not be brought down to the mudslinging level of an idiot. Alas, they have come crashing down to KP's level at a terrifying speed, and so it's no surprise that they're getting a terrible backlash from this.

I'd agree that on the whole KP probably does come out of this worse. But it's a bad job when an entire institution, that ought to know better, starts to engage itself in tit-for-tat slanging match with an individual whose credibility is dubious at best.

 

[Spark]

It's also the fact that KP is technically irrelevant now. He's not gonna play again, it doesn't actually matter in practice what he's doing.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

What do you class as 'qualify by birth'?

Either being born in a country or other possible extenuating circumstances. For instance someone might have parents who happen to be overseas in the armed forces etc but is still raised in their parents home country from an infant.

 

[Jono]

It's also the fact that KP is technically irrelevant now. He's not gonna play again, it doesn't actually matter in practice what he's doing.

Hmm, get your point but when you start using the term "bullying" it actually slightly matters.

 

[cnerd123]

Either being born in a country or other possible extenuating circumstances. For instance someone might have parents who happen to be overseas in the armed forces etc but is still raised in their parents home country from an infant.

Aren't you going to draw an arbitrary line somewhere? Is being raised from 3 years old up okay? How about 4? 7? 12? 15? What if you went overseas for 5 years to get a uni degree? At what point do you no longer become eligible to play for a country because you weren't 'raised up' there enough?

 

[Arachnodouche]

Pietersen has an ego, no doubt, but mediocrity usually finds a way to pull genius down to its level. KP has never been one to keep his opinions to himself and it was his luck to be involved with the typical modern-day, politically correct organizational set-up that wouldn't be shy of monitoring their employee's bowel movements. There is rat involved on both sides but the difference is that Pietersen will admit his ****ups to a degree while the ECB never will.