Kevin Pietersen Eyeing International Comeback With South Africa
It’s been over three years since Kevin Pietersen last played an international game but the discarded England batsman is still harbouring hopes of making a sensational return to international cricket albeit for a different country. The right-handed batsman, who has had his fair share of controversies with England, was finally sacked in the aftermath of England’s humiliating 5-0 Ashes loss Down Under.
And while any possibility of representing England is almost next to impossible, the South Africa-born cricketer can represent the Proteas. The 37-year old, who has been busy playing franchise cricket across the globe since his sacking, will be eligible to play for South Africa in 2019 – ahead of the World Cup. And the England star is not ruling out the possibility.
“You are talking about in two years’ time. Would I? Who knows? We’ll have to wait and see where I am. I’m in a happy place right now,” Pietersen said. “I’m going to be playing a lot of cricket in South Africa over the next two years, so we’ll see.
Pietersen, who is currently plying his trade for Surrey in the NatWest T20 Blast, has already announced that the ongoing English season will be his last in England’s first-class cricket. The reason behind Pietersen’s unavailability for the next summer is that he will spend the time building a new house near Kruger National Park in order to become more involved in wildlife conservation programmes.
But the star batsman, nevertheless, is making the impact in his last English season. Playing his first English domestic game in over two years, he slammed a half-century which helped Surrey to a 10-run win over Essex. However, he could not field during the game because of a calf injury and hinted that fitness will play an integral role in his decision to make a comeback.
“The issue with (playing in) England next year is I’m building a lodge in Africa and the time I’ll be there with my family and doing stuff in Africa is over this period, so I won’t be in England next year. And then I don’t think at 39 I fancy warm-ups in the summer,” he further said.
“I love batting: I will bat for as long as I love the art of batting,” he said. “I do at the moment, but I’m an old man now, I’ve just hurt my calf, I didn’t field. If I had gone out there and started sprinting I could have done a lot of damage to it.”
