Kevin Pietersen still dreams of representing England again
Fresh from his heroics in the just-concluded fifth edition of the Big Bash League, Kevin Pietersen has once again reiterated his desire to represent England and pleaded with the selectors to end his international exile, cricket.com.au reports.
The flamboyant batsman scored 323 runs in nine innings for the Melbourne Stars, including knocks of 62 in the semifinal and 74 in the final, leading to calls for the ECB from former cricketers, including Michael Vaughan, to include Pietersen in England’s squad for the 2016 ICC World T20 to be held in India later this year.
Pietersen, who last represented England more than two years back, himself has put his weight behind his selection and spoke of his dream of donning the national jersey again in his career.
"The truth is, I would absolutely love to," Pietersen told the Telegraph. "I feel I am in the best form of my life and it would be an honour to represent the country alongside the fantastic group of players we have got in our side.”
The 35-year-old also praised England head coach Trevor Bayliss and the ODI team management for their approach to the shorter formats of the game, after a dismal World Cup campaign in 2015.
"From what I hear, Trevor Bayliss is a great coach and the environment within the team, and the way they approach one-day cricket is absolutely spot on. If they pick me I will do my job: score runs and help the youngsters. I have been working with the young guys at the Melbourne Stars and I would love to do the same with our boys.
"I know I am good enough to play but I have no clue if they will pick me. If they do fantastic, if they do not then I will just carry on as normal and support the guys," Pietersen said.
Pietersen will not play in the Natwest Blast
When asked about his chances of playing in the Natwest Blast, England’s premier T20 competition, Pietersen replied in the negative stating that the tournament was spread over too long a period. He went on to praise Cricket Australia for their efforts in promoting the BBL, words which might not go down well with the ECB.
"Unfortunately, I find the NatWest Blast is spread over too long a time for me to get any consistency and it is a shame our county game does not have a competition similar to the Big Bash," he said.
"Cricket Australia has done an amazing job promoting the tournament. The tickets are not expensive, hence the huge crowds. They market the competition very well and the standard is high. It is shown on terrestrial television and the product each franchise put together is special in terms of marketing and the way they go about their business," Pietersen added.
Outlining his plans in the coming year, should the call for an England comeback be left unanswered, Pietersen confirmed that he would be playing in the inaugural edition of the Pakistan Super League as well as the Indian Premier League and South Africa’s Ram Slam T20 competition before returning for the BBL next year.