Kevin Pietersen eyeing return to international cricket, might skip IPL for county cricket

Kevin Pietersen – Down but not out yet

Sunrises Hyderabad fans may be headed for disappointment as their ace batsmen Kevin Pietersen is contemplating a county move. The 34-year-old says that he may miss the 8th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in wake of a probable England recall.

Pietersen to choose country cricket over IPL?

Pietersen recently made his preference clear when asked to choose between IPL and county cricket,

"That's (county cricket) what I'm looking at," he told Fox Sports Australia.

The veteran of 104 Tests and 136 ODIs for England further added that he wants to explore more options and is hopeful of making a return to the English side. "It just makes perfect sense to explore different things," Pietersen further added.

Pietersen was last seen in action for England during their 5-0 whitewash against Australia down under. He has been out of action from international for 14 months since then. The road back may not be rosy for the star batsmen as national selector James Whitaker said at that time that there was "no way" Pietersen would return to the England team.

This should come as no surprise after the South Africa-born had heavily criticized several senior English players as well as officials in his autobiography. An ECB spokesperson back then had said: "Only players who are playing consistent high-quality county cricket and who are seen as a positive influence will be selected."

Boycott backs Pietersen’s claim

Former England skipper Geoffrey Boycott has backed Pietersen's claim back to the national side.

Speaking in favour of the axed cricketer, Boycott explained: "It needs to be put clear to Kevin that if he plays well in county cricket then there's going to be a genuine - and I mean the word genuine - change of heart and change of opinion that he is going to be open for selection and that they are going to put bygones to one side. I don't think that it is fair to ask anybody to give up an IPL contract because that's all he has. He only has T20 around the world."

As the County Championships begin on April 12, it remains to be seen how the explosive middle order batsmen gears up to the challenge and if playing in the tournament will actually help him make a comeback to the English team.

New ECB boss Colin Graves, last month, had indicated that Pietersen could make a return if he proves himself in country cricket.