England batsman Kevin Pietersen has come in for serious criticism in this year’s Wisden.
A controversial year for England’s Kevin Pietersen, which included exile from the Test squad after texting South African rivals, has been topped off with a damning description by Wisden.
The historic cricket publication is in its 150th year and the write-up of Pietersen in the 2012 copy is less than complimentary.
“He was arrogant, attempting to bulldoze over the terms of his central contract,” Wisden editor Lawrence Booth wrote of the batsman, as quoted on ESPNcricinfo.
“He was self-pitying, claiming he had never been looked after. And he was a man apart, sending silly texts to the South Africans.”
For Pietersen this is quite a fall from grace in the cricket Almanack after being named one of their prestigious Five Cricketers of the Year just 12 months ago.
It also caps off a turbulent time in the 32-year-old’s career, which started with his shock naming and swift removal as England captain in 2008 and concluded with the batsman sending derogatory texts about his teammates to South African players.
Pietersen has also been served up for criticism for his repeated involvement in the IPL – where the Three Lions star makes around £1.3million a year – which has often been said to have hampered his time with the England team.
However there is no doubting the South African-born cricketer’s talent with the bat, as he has scored 7,499 Test runs since making his debut in 2005 at an average of 49.01.
The batting maestro has also been instrumental in two Ashes victories for England and in helping his side to the No.1 spot in the world in 2011, but his last year in the game has clearly not sat well with Wisden and its writers.
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