Anyone else hate it......

......how it's so easy to see when Pietersen is about to get himself out because he's trying to be too clever? It's so obvious that you'd think the guy at the other end would come down and have a few worlds to him before he does it. Great player, but he does lack match awareness sometimes.

He's been found out.

I always thought that the best thing for Pietersen would have been if Thorpe or Hussain had still been in the side when he started, they were the sort of players who would have a quiet word and try to calm him down. I remember watching Pietersen, Flintoff and Jones swinging away at balls that were not there to be hit last time england toured Pakistan and none of the batsmen at the other end even tried to have a word.

Second innings at Adelaide also comes to mind- Out trying to play a dinky little sweep first ball he faced from Warne bowling around the wicket into the rough. Hmm....

I don't hate is as it makes not the slightest difference to me, unless he's playing my team, but I have observed it as well.

Gildas wrote:I always thought that the best thing for Pietersen would have been if Thorpe or Hussain had still been in the side when he started, they were the sort of players who would have a quiet word and try to calm him down. I remember watching Pietersen, Flintoff and Jones swinging away at balls that were not there to be hit last time england toured Pakistan and none of the batsmen at the other end even tried to have a word.

Problem is that I'm not at all sure sensible words from tried and tested players would have made any difference to KPratt because he's such an arrogant pr*ck. Lots of talent, but as the saying goes, it's not what you have, it's what you do with it that counts.

I thought he looked in danger of getting himself out for quite a number of overs before he did.

And welcome to the forum Gildas.

He only played a match winning innings one game ago.

He's also not the first player to have been bowled in that manner: I refer you to Brian Lara vs Andrew Flintoff 2004, and that was in a test match.

Lara's first movement was always back and across, though. KP had walked 2 feet outside off stump before Vaas had even bowled the ball. It gave Vaas an exposed set of stumps to aim at. Michael Vaughan did something similar against Nuwan Zoysa in the 2004 champions trophy game at the Rose Bowl. I seem to remember that dismissal causing quite a lot of anger amongst England fans.

OK he gets out from too much confidence, but without that he wouldn't have scored the 158 that secured the Ashes.

Thats true Rob. Though id like to see what his average score is for the innings after he scores a century for England. Sometimes I feel he gets a little too confident and forgets that he's starting a completely new innings from the one he had played 1-2 days earlier.

PearlJ wrote:He's been found out.

Well and truely found out. Seam bowlers cutting the ball in, gets him. Asif and Maharoof clearly showed that.

Odd how the finest seamer of all-time couldn't do it in real cricket then...

...also odd how he averages about a million against SL in Tests containing the great Maharoof, whilst a mere 48 against PAK in Tests containing the drugged one.

Anyways, as had been said, the only threat to Pietersen is himself. He's a knob who thinks he's better than he is. He's world-class, but in his mind he's the best batsman ever.

Migara wrote:

PearlJ wrote:He's been found out.

Well and truely found out. Seam bowlers cutting the ball in, gets him. Asif and Maharoof clearly showed that.

And very slow Dwayne Bravo bouncers.

Yep KP's garbage.

Get rid...

'Arrogant prick', 'knob'.

Why? Sure he can be frustrating at times, but I fail to see what makes him arrogant. Imho having tons of self belief and playing without fear should be praised, not criticised.

I would've thought people would've gotten used to the fact that that's just how he bats.

A lot of his game is bluff and bluster - it's looking to be the Alpha male in any given circumstance even when he's being dominated by certain bowlers.

And by Jove, it's working for him.

But, yes, it is true - he sometimes does get out. Which makes him a total liability...

Yeah but he did it when England had just lost a couple of wickets at the other end which makes him looks arrogant as if he was playing for himself. Also the fact that he was doing it every over/few times an over doesn't help either.

But if he clips that ball down the leg-side for four everyone's giving it the "Pietersen counter-punching for England - crisis, what crisis?"

You can't have it both ways. Sometimes he comes off and looks like a champ. Sometimes he doesn't and it all looks a bit of a cock up.

Henry Nolonga wrote:Yeah but he did it when England had just lost a couple of wickets at the other end which makes him looks arrogant as if he was playing for himself. Also the fact that he was doing it every over/few times an over doesn't help either.

There's a world of difference between looking arrogant and being arrogant. He probably was playing for himself, but if he genuinely believed doing it the KP way was the best way for England then all well and good.

The way I see it the bloke's in a lose lose situation. If he gets out 'crabbing' he gets slagged off. If he goes for broke early and gets out he gets slagged off, and if he tries to compromise and gets out to his first expansive shot after playing himself in he gets slagged off.

The sooner we accept his genius is flawed and there'll be bad days amongst the many good ones the better.

I would like to see him move around the crease a lot less. It seems a ploy that is taking over cricket at the OD level, and I believe it limits your scoring chances against good bowling whilst increasing risk.

Just my opinion.

tac wrote:I would like to see him move around the crease a lot less. It seems a ploy that is taking over cricket at the OD level, and I believe it limits your scoring chances against good bowling whilst increasing risk.

Just my opinion.

Tac in sensible cricket post shock.

doctorspin wrote:

tac wrote:I would like to see him move around the crease a lot less. It seems a ploy that is taking over cricket at the OD level, and I believe it limits your scoring chances against good bowling whilst increasing risk.

Just my opinion.

Tac in sensible cricket post shock.

A bit rich coming from you, old cock!

I would like to see him move around the crease a lot less. It seems a ploy that is taking over cricket at the OD level

It is a ploy that has taken over Englands one day cricket. Put us in an ODI power play situation and suddenly our batsmen are walking around everywhere, trying to do things that they never do normally. An extension of normal cricket shots is the best option. What is the point of Ian Bell walking towards Chaminda Vaas every ball? He didnt do it once in the series against India, and surprise surprise, he was Englands best batsman in the series.

Too much movement before the ball is bowled just leads to poor balance.

He did do it against India. That's why he carried on plugging away with it in this series - it worked for him before, so why not this time?

However, against India he was more selective. Seemed like (much as Saj Mahmood got carried away after taking a wicket with a slower ball and then bowled nothing but slower balls) he'd convinced himself that the 'wander' was now the only way he could bat, and forgot the basics.

Silly boy.

tac wrote:

doctorspin wrote:

tac wrote:I would like to see him move around the crease a lot less. It seems a ploy that is taking over cricket at the OD level, and I believe it limits your scoring chances against good bowling whilst increasing risk.

Just my opinion.

Tac in sensible cricket post shock.

A bit rich coming from you, old cock!

Suppose, but sadly, I have to say you are spot on on that point.

You would have thought that that is precisely the sort of thing that coaches would pick up on. Maybe it's because you don't need all the hi-tech equipment to ID that problem that it seems to have gone unnoticed. Wood for trees and all that.