Pietersen - enigma?

[Alan B]

A superb entertainer with massive talent, but is he a good team player? At times he sems pre-occupied with himself, to the exclusion of his team.
Can he overcome his ego - I hope so!

Why did he go to Hampshire. Was it money, Shane Warne, ambition, or dislike of a Notts team mate?

 

[Mr Casson]

I've never seen him play or heard him speak, but from what I've heard of him, and some quotes of his I've come across, he does seem like a bit of a self-centred little boy.

 

[a massive zebra]

from what I've heard of him, and some quotes of his I've come across, he does seem like a bit of a self-centred little boy.

Truer words of wisdom have never been spoken. He is a muppet.

 

[BoyBrumby]

His constant railing against the SA quota system is, at best, ill-conceived & he is a trifle self-centred, but I don't mind a guy having a bit of respect for his own ability.

It will be very interesting to see how he gets on in the ODIs.

 

[SpaceMonkey]

I dont see anything wrong in a player moaning about the quota system when he's possibly a victim of it. It's his livelyhood remember. Pieterson is no more confident in his own ability any every Australian i know

 

[BoyBrumby]

I dont see anything wrong in a player moaning about the quota system when he's possibly a victim of it. It's his livelyhood remember.

True enough, but Steyn and De Villiers have been given a shot lately, so it is possible for white lads to have a fair crack at it in SA.

 

[SpaceMonkey]

True, but thats probably cos they are desperate for talent atm..something they werent 4-5 years ago.

 

[marc71178]

His constant railing against the SA quota system is, at best, ill-conceived

I don't see how?

Any system that means Amla plays Tests is wrong.

 

[BoyBrumby]

I don't see how?

Any system that means Amla plays Tests is wrong.

It's a slightly blunt tool designed to redress 45 years of Apartheid & as long again before of unofficial discriminatory policies.

I don't agree with it; I actually argued for the retention of Van Jaarsveld over Amla in the main Eng-SA thread. The trouble is if a player moans about "blacks getting all the breaks" he sounds a d1ck & a borderline racist.

I imagine the philosophy behind the policy is to encourage the cricketing development of formerly disadvantaged ethnic groups in SA. In practice there have been a few players who have been promoted beyond their abilities. Some tho, like Langeveldt (debut at 30, takes 5-for) seem to have been held back. I guess it isn't an exact science.

 

[SpaceMonkey]

I imagine the philosophy behind the policy is to encourage the cricketing development of formerly disadvantaged ethnic groups in SA. In practice there have been a few players who have been promoted beyond their abilities. Some tho, like Langeveldt (debut at 30, takes 5-for) seem to have been held back. I guess it isn't an exact science.

If thats the case then run a quota at all levels from local club cricket to the 'A' side. But the main national XI should be the best XI, whether all white or all black. Anything other than that will harm the team in the long run. If you have a quota system at all levels then eventually you'll get good enough black players who will come through to the first XI naturally.

 

[twctopcat]

From what i've seen and heard of Pietersen he seems quite a likeable and genuine man. He also speaks his mind which i think is a good thing, yet some people seem to have trouble dealing with. His cricket speaks for itself.

 

[social]

I've never seen him play or heard him speak, but from what I've heard of him, and some quotes of his I've come across, he does seem like a bit of a self-centred little boy.

Should you ever be in the "fortunate" position of being interviewed by the media, you'll understand that mis-quotes, statements out of context, and distortions are all components of most journalists' repertoires.

Dont take anything you hear or read too seriously unless you have more evidence than is generally presented in a 30-second sound-bite.

 

[Mr Casson]

Should you ever be in the "fortunate" position of being interviewed by the media, you'll understand that mis-quotes, statements out of context, and distortions are all components of most journalists' repertoires.

Dont take anything you hear or read too seriously unless you have more evidence than is generally presented in a 30-second sound-bite.

I haven't made a judgement on him yet, because, as twctopcat said, his cricket speaks for itself. I was just talking about the limited coverage of him I've come across.

 

[Richard]

I don't see how?

Any system that means Amla plays Tests is wrong.

Amla earnt his go.
Which cannot be said for Tsolekile.

 

[Richard]

A superb entertainer with massive talent, but is he a good team player? At times he sems pre-occupied with himself, to the exclusion of his team.
Can he overcome his ego - I hope so!

Why did he go to Hampshire. Was it money, Shane Warne, ambition, or dislike of a Notts team mate?

The common "desire for a new challenge". Some people (inexplicably for me - but there you go!) just don't do "settled".
He did fall-out with Notts in 2003\04 but he played in 2004 without any regrets and in the end there wasn't anything acrimonious about his departure.
As for is he a good team player - if he scores runs for the team, he's a good team player!

 

[Richard]

I don't agree with it; I actually argued for the retention of Van Jaarsveld over Amla in the main Eng-SA thread.

Personally I'd argue for neither of them.

 

[Richard]

It's a slightly blunt tool designed to redress 45 years of Apartheid & as long again before of unofficial discriminatory policies.

As for that - yes, annoying, isn't it! When people try to make-up for wrongs done to those who're long-gone by creating more wrongs for the current lot in the inverse of the original wrongs.
Had the same argument with a female friend of mine about the feminine-dominated society of the current age and how it's not right or poetic-justice - because it won't help the women who had to put-up with whatever in the last 6000 years or so.

 

[wpdavid]

If thats the case then run a quota at all levels from local club cricket to the 'A' side. But the main national XI should be the best XI, whether all white or all black. Anything other than that will harm the team in the long run. If you have a quota system at all levels then eventually you'll get good enough black players who will come through to the first XI naturally.

And, in reality, that's pretty much what has happened. As others have said, Amla's FC performances merited a callup, and he was promptly ditched when he didn't look up to it at test level. I'm prepared to believe that Tsolekile didn't merit his callup, but he only lasted three tests anyway. Prior to that, you have Ontong's 2 or 3 tests and, more arguably, Ashwell Prince and that's about it. I'm afraid the blaming of quotas for SA's ills at test level, which we read a lot of elsewhere, is fiction.

 

[Marius]

The quota system is a reality, but it is clear that if you are good enough, you will make the team, no matter what. Look at the current one-day squad. Adam Bacher and Justin Kemp got call-ups due to good form in the domestic competition, skin colour clearly had nothing to do with it. Out of the four non-white guys in the squad, three are there definitely on merit (Ntini, Langeveldt and Gibbs), and while Prince is probably not world-class, he has been in good form in the domestic comp, and has a decentish record in the limited number of games he has played.

 

[wpdavid]

The quota system is a reality, but it is clear that if you are good enough, you will make the team, no matter what. Look at the current one-day squad. Adam Bacher and Justin Kemp got call-ups due to good form in the domestic competition, skin colour clearly had nothing to do with it. Out of the four non-white guys in the squad, three are there definitely on merit (Ntini, Langeveldt and Gibbs), and while Prince is probably not world-class, he has been in good form in the domestic comp, and has a decentish record in the limited number of games he has played.

Sure. BTW I didn't mean quotas don't exist at all - only that they shouldn't be blamed for the performances of the SA national side, in case I didn't make that clear.