LONDON (Sporting Alert) — Former England opener and captain Michael Atherton believes that current skipper Alastair Cook played a key part in the decision to axed star batsman Kevin Pietersen from the national setup.
Watch Video Of Michael Atherton Take on Kevin Pietersen’s Sacking
The England management on Tuesday announced that the controversial batsman Pietersen, would not be part of the squad for the forthcoming One Day International series in the West Indies, nor for the World T20 in March, which has ultimately ended his nine year England career.
Paul Downton, the Managing Director of England Cricket, made the announcement on Tuesday, saying: “Everyone was aware that there was a need to begin the long term planning after the Australia tour.
“Therefore we have decided the time is right to look to the future and start to rebuild not only the team but also team ethic and philosophy.”
He added: “…we all wish Kevin the very best in the rest of his career.”
Pietersen met with four member panel that included Cook this week, and Atherton thinks it was the voice of the captain that was the key to the overall decision.
“I think Alastair Cook is the interesting one (of the senior management) because he brought Pietersen back after the textgate during the South Africa series that led to Andrew Strauss’ demise. I think that relationship has soured over the last few months,” Atherton told Sky Sports News.
