ECB apologises to Kevin Pietersen following 'disinterested' comments and Andrew Flintoff's comeback gains momentum.
It’s been a busy week in English cricket with theEngland and Wales Cricket Board apologising for comments made by managing director Paul Downton concerning Kevin Pietersen’s sacking from the international side.
The Daily Mail’s Paul Newman was particularly aggrieved with the drip-feed nature of information coming out of both the England and Pietersen camps and the ECB’s handling of the situation to date.
“It is another blow to the ECB, who have been outmanoeuvred by Pietersen in the PR stakes despite having justifiable reasons for the sacking,” Newman wrote.
“It will also be frustrating for senior players and coaches who want the full story made public as soon as possible.
“And the fact that Pietersen has regularly appeared to breach the confidentiality agreement himself through comments made via his voluble mouthpiece Piers Morgan does not seem to have been taken into account.
“What is clear is that both sides should have been allowed to have their say at the time, rather than leaving frustrated supporters in the dark.”
As the postmortem on one England international career continues, another looks to be eyeing a resurrection, with Andrew Flintoff returning to competitive cricket with local club St Annes ahead of joining Lanchashire Lightning in the T20 Blast.
Bowling with considerably less pace and venom than he did in his prime Flintoff survived his first encounter, picking up 3-26 off 12 overs with five maidens.
He wasn’t as successful with the bat however, holing out in the deep for two.
Simon Wilde of The Sunday Times was particularly enamoured with the big allrounder’s return.
“Like the boxers in whose circles he has mixed, Andrew Flintoff viewed retirement as not necessarily a permanent state of affairs," wrote Wilde.
“He was forced to give up cricket because his body could not cope but his heart always pined for more.
“All being well he will step out in front of a sellout crowd at Old Trafford on Friday for Lancashire’s T20 Blast against Yorkshire and the fairytale will be complete.”
Writing in the Guardian, Vic Marks said he was looking forward to Pietersen and Flintoff returning to the UK domestic scene butlamented the lack of true crowd-pullers in English cricket.
“It is an uncomfortable truth for the England and Wales Cricket Board that there is not yet anyone in its side capable of seducing the ambivalent cricket follower from his/her sofa quite like this odd couple.”
Despite his enthusiasm, Marks goes on to explain his concerns about Flintoff’s return.
“For him the landscape is trickier,” Marks wrote.
“He has not played a real game of cricket for five years; there has been the odd outing for the PCA Masters XI within the past two years.
“It is a more daunting undertaking for Flintoff, albeit a far more welcome one than his excursion into heavyweight boxing.”
Flintoff’s former England captain Nasser Hussain shared similar sentiments in the Daily Mail, but urged Flintoff to take his return seriously.
“News of Flintoff's return has to be good for the NatWest T20 Blast because, spread out over the season, we do not have as many stars as the IPL and cricket always needs huge characters and personalities like him," wrote Hussain.
“My only concern is whether this turns out to be a gimmick or a PR stunt.
“The last thing Lancashire and the game need is for Flintoff to play in two or three games and then decide it is not for him after all.
“This cannot be allowed to become a circus or the 'Freddie Flintoff Show'.”
The Telegraph’s Scyld Berry was far less diplomatic in his assessment of the former England allrounder’s chances, headlining his column, “It will be a miracle if Andrew Flintoff's Twenty20 comeback proves to be a success.”
“If Flintoff can roll back the years, it will be as a batsman,” wrote Berry.
“Straight-driving was his glory, and he should be able to hit a few more balls back over the bowler’s head, as he did in that Edgbaston Test of 2005.
“But as Paul Collingwood wisely remarked when he returned to international cricket as England’s fielding coach earlier this year, albeit temporarily: the game has moved on at a frightening pace, and especially the skills required for T20.
“Flintoff’s qualities were always born of strength, not subtlety.
“It will be as big a miracle as his 2005 Ashes series – no allrounder has ever had a greater one – if Flintoff’s time does come again.”
Cricket Australia
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