Trouble in the English camp : Pietersen Vs Moores!?

[Zinzan]

If you're being distraught about losing a year or (at best) two of (mostly irrelevant) ODI-playing from such a bowler, it's a little worrying.

Fair call, I was very disappointed without being totally distraught come to think of it, as I'm sure most NZ fans were in hearing the news. Its not like we have tons of world-class players lining up to play for us, so naturally it was a reasonable blow for supporters, even though as you quite rightly point out he had pretty much given up on test cricket at that stage & did probably only have a couple of years left.

Having said that, do you not think that generally-speaking the 'Bond-banning' was more of a blow for NZ fans than the stepping down of a skipper (still available to play mind) who most weren't even that convinced about anyway?

Given your history of playing devils advocate, I'll assume your answer will be "no" , even though as a knowledgeable cricket fan, I know you'll be well aware of the infatuation NZ fans had with Bondy, even if he was injured most of the time.

And for the record, I do know a number of NZ fans who were truly "distraught" with the Bond/ICL news.

 

[four_or_six]

Daily Mail journos aren't mind-readers or Animagi though. Someone, somewhere must've told someone something.

Though it could be one of those ubiquitous "unnamed sources" I suppose.

Heard some suggestions that Giles might just have mentioned something to Vaughan who might just have accidentally said something to someone.

 

[Bob Bamber]

Tom Moody wants the job!

 

[Athlai]

Fair call, I was very disappointed without being totally distraught come to think of it, as I'm sure most NZ fans were in hearing the news. Its not like we have tons of world-class players lining up to play for us, so naturally it was a reasonable blow for supporters, even though as you quite rightly point out he had pretty much given up on test cricket at that stage & did probably only have a couple of years left.

Having said that, do you not think that generally-speaking the 'Bond-banning' was more of a blow for NZ fans than the stepping down of a skipper (still available to play mind) who most weren't even that convinced about anyway?

Given your history of playing devils advocate, I'll assume your answer will be "no" , even though as a knowledgeable cricket fan, I know you'll be well aware of the infatuation NZ fans had with Bondy, even if he was injured most of the time.

And for the record, I do know a number of NZ fans who were truly "distraught" with the Bond/ICL news.

If Bond was still playing we'd totally have the world's best ODI attack.

Bond
Mills
Vettori
Oram
/Franklin/Southee/O'Brien/Patel/Gillespie/Martin/anyone

 

[Richard]

Bond still playing in 2 years' time though is quite some call. In fact, Bond still playing now if he'd been playing ODIs for the last year is no sealed deal given the weakness of his body.

 

[Richard]

Heard some suggestions that Giles might just have mentioned something to Vaughan who might just have accidentally said something to someone.

Accidentally in speechmarks, is that?

 

[zaremba]

Am starting to lose respect for Vaughan a bit.

 

[Richard]

which is what BB said in his initial post.. It doesn't seem to have been KP.. So must have quite obviously been one of those "sources" from the ECB...

Not neccessarily. Could've been anywhere. Could've been someone KP "trusted" who "accidentally" let something slip.

Anyway, seems it's all conjecture, so I see little point blaming either party. There's unlikely to be any way of knowing. That's why I have a visceral dislike for journalism of times. It's so easy to influence things in the name of a story against all morality and decency. There is no way this Daily Mail writer, whoever it was, should've either known what he\she knew or allow whoever it was told him\her to remain anonymous. But they'll get their story, and have a good chance of getting more, that way, so that's the way it is.

 

[Richard]

Yeah, for sure, doubt it would have been KP though

But therefore there's no way of knowing for certain that it was someone from the ECB either. There is no way you can confidently blame either party.

 

[Richard]

Fair call, I was very disappointed without being totally distraught come to think of it, as I'm sure most NZ fans were in hearing the news. Its not like we have tons of world-class players lining up to play for us, so naturally it was a reasonable blow for supporters, even though as you quite rightly point out he had pretty much given up on test cricket at that stage & did probably only have a couple of years left.

Having said that, do you not think that generally-speaking the 'Bond-banning' was more of a blow for NZ fans than the stepping down of a skipper (still available to play mind) who most weren't even that convinced about anyway?

Given your history of playing devils advocate, I'll assume your answer will be "no" , even though as a knowledgeable cricket fan, I know you'll be well aware of the infatuation NZ fans had with Bondy, even if he was injured most of the time.

And for the record, I do know a number of NZ fans who were truly "distraught" with the Bond/ICL news.

I think NZ's loss of Bond probably was more of a blow than England's loss of Pietersen's captaincy, yes. But I don't think either of them were particularly enormous, not to the level of fans needing to be distraught with it. Not to the level of, for example, West Indies losing Brian Lara's services because someone somewhere preferred Runako Morton.

 

[BoyBrumby]

KP not nuts over Flower either

From Paul Weaver in today's Guardian.

More ECB leekage it seems. Well done them. Their rifle sights unfailingly trained on their own feet:

A senior official on the England and Wales Cricket Board said yesterday: "Pietersen wanted half of them out and certainly Andy Flower. I don't know what he was hoping to achieve but I've never encountered an ego quite like it in cricket. He wanted to run the show." Another management board member said: "I did hear that Kevin wanted Andy out."

Clearly Pietersen might be considered a suitable case for treatment, but is it really politic to publicly humiliate your only world-class player who isn't a cripple!?!?! Not to mention what it'll do for team unity if Flower does get the head coach gig on even a temporary basis.

Staggering.

 

[Richard]

Guess some people just think that some things must be punished regardless.

Who knows, maybe Pietersen will come out of this a better person? Might be hoping for a bit too much, admittedly, but brilliant batsman or not, it's hardly healthy to have someone carrying-on like this and a bit of the old public dressing-down is, as I've said before, generally the best way to show a cricket player the error of his ways.

More interestingly, I wonder why on Earth Pietersen doesn't get-on with Andy Flower? Seems strange in the extreme, as I honestly can't recall so much as one person, in the many different camps Flower's been in in the last decade, having a bad word to say about him. Guess Pietersen's next book might be more interesting than his last "study in narcissm, and should be avoided at all costs" one.

 

[G.I.Joe]

There was an interview of Grant Flower's sometime ago where he was reminiscing about his childhood, growing up and playing with Andy Flower. I distinctly recall the word 'stubborn' being used by Grant of his brother.

Putting two and two together, it might seem a case of the irresistable force meeting the immovable object in the case of Pietersen and Flower.

 

[pskov]

There's a difference between not getting on with and not rating as a coach I would guess.

To me it seems that Pietersen is only really guilty of naivety in this whole facade. If he had ended his holiday when the initial leaks came out and flown to meet with Giles Clarke straight away then I think it would all have been sorted out rather quicker and easier and he'd still be in a job.

 

[Bob Bamber]

Strauss is One Day Captain for the West Indies tour - Guardian Cricket

"Andrew and I have also agreed that we will review the one-day captaincy at the end of the tour. Andrew is extremely comfortable with that."

There will, however, be no interim coach for the trip, which means Strauss will be supported by assistant coach Andy Flower and team operations manager Phil Neale.

No interim coach - so are there only 3 selectors?

 

[Richard]

It seems a little worrying that there's basically going to be no "head of the team" figure - Phil Neale's merits as Operations Manager are excellent, but he's not a manager manager.

Nonetheless, hopefully this will convince people that the need for a "head coach" might be spurious. But clearly, there needs to be some sort of headman, in time, and I don't like the idea of that headman being Geoff Miller, the CoS.

 

[GIMH]

Sounds to me like Strauss will keep the Test gig but that the one-day armband will be reviewed

 

[BoyBrumby]

Sounds to me like Strauss will keep the Test gig but that the one-day armband will be reviewed

Shoulda kept Collingwood. Jesus, what a mess.

 

[GIMH]

Oh, but Collingwood quit of his own accord, seriously

 

[Harry Harrison]

Oh, but Collingwood quit of his own accord, seriously

Your comments are always funny. i really enjoy.