Kevin Pietersen, the controversial England batsman made it crystal clear that he wanted to be back in the English setup at any cost. Pietersen slammed an outstanding 326 while batting for Surrey in a first class game. It was an innings which reminded fans of the good old days, when Pietersen was at the top of his game.
Post his knock, Pietersen took to social media, to remind the England selectors about his presence. Pietersen said that he would soon meet Andrew Strauss, the recently appointed director of England cricket.
“I was thinking about it while batting and, given the pressure I was under this morning, that is one of my best innings I have ever played, purely because I knew that tomorrow there is a press conference and there were things happening this evening. I needed to answer any questions with runs on the deck. Goodness 326 is a pretty good argument,” said Pietersen after his sensational innings.
The timing of the innings couldn’t be any better. It came just a day prior to Strauss’ press conference at the Lord’s, where the former England captain would take over as the director of England cricket.
“They say timing is everything. Strauss has come in, there is a new chairman on Friday and there has to be a new coach now Moores has gone and it is an interesting time,” Pietersen said. “What more can I do? I was told to get a county, I was told to score runs and I have always said since my knee was sorted that if my knee is good I will play well. I am not being paid any money here and I am dedicated to getting my England place back.”
“As a batter you get judged on hundreds you get. I always wanted to get 50 first-class hundreds and to have ticked that off as well today was pretty special. The more you bat the better you see the ball and because of the fields they placed with every man on the boundary for two hours it was about managing my patience,” Pietersen continued.