Strauss says it would be “unhealthy” if Pietersen not aligned with county side
June 22nd, 2010 - 5:03 pm ICT by ANI
Sydney, Jun 22 (ANI): Kevin Pietersen’s decision to quit county side Hampshire has given rise to rumours that he will available for hire outside of his commitments to the national side, something that England captain Andrew Strauss has termed as “unhealthy”.
Pietersen, who only recently made his first appearance for Hampshire in two years, cited travel between west London and Southampton as the reason for quitting the county club.
His decision to part ways with Hampshire has led to accusations that he prefers to keep his options open to lucrative openings in the Twenty20, led by the IPL, where Pietersen signed a two-year deal in 2009 worth up to 1.55 million dollars.
Strauss felt every English player should have a commitment with a county, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
“I think that would be unhealthy not to have an international player aligned to a county, and probably wouldn’t set a great precedent,” Strauss said.
“It’s important that when England players are available to play for a county they give the wealth of their experience back to their counties,” he said.
Strauss’ Middlesex and Surrey, the two county sides based in London, are favourites to sign the Chelsea-based Pietersen should he decide to maintain a county link.
“KP is probably not going to play a huge amount of cricket, whoever he signs for. But he’s an asset for any side, and I’m sure there will be people eager to sign him. I can’t speak for Middlesex at this stage,” said Strauss. (ANI)
- Pietersen leaves Hampshire - Jun 18, 2010
- Strauss signs two-year contract extension with Middlesex - Oct 29, 2010
- Surrey signs fast bowler Dirk Nannes - May 27, 2011
- England captain Strauss retires from professional cricket - Aug 29, 2012
- England announce unchanged squad for Oval Test - Aug 14, 2011
- ECB asks Pietersen to find a new county or risk losing his contract - Aug 11, 2010
- Young Hampshire batting star axing KP is a big decision - Aug 14, 2010
- Hampshire snubs Pietersen - Jul 21, 2010
- 'I am ok with Hampshire's decision': Pietersen tweets - Aug 11, 2010
- England rest Pietersen for one-day series against India - Aug 27, 2011
- Panesar, Davies return to England squad - Dec 09, 2011
- ECB tells Pietersen to stay away from Modi - Aug 11, 2010
- England rest Anderson for ODI series in India - Sep 27, 2011
- Hampshire gives Hughes opportunity to reclaim Oz Test spot - Aug 05, 2010
- Feels strange to be back in England, says Fletcher - Jul 14, 2011
Tags: accusations, andrew strauss, commitments, cricket, england captain, england players, first appearance, international player, ipl, kevin pietersen, kp, middlesex, million dollars, morning herald, southampton, surrey, sydney morning herald, twenty20, west london