England coach Andy Flower said recently that Pietersen needed significant rest" in order to be fully fit for a busy 2013 schedule.Following a meeting with a specialist and undergoing a scan, Pietersen's knee was put in a brace on 27 March.Following the two-Test series, England host the Champions Trophy tournament and then compete in a five-Test Ashes series against Australia, which gets under way on 10 July at Trent Bridge.It is understood, he was to spend two weeks wearing the brace before a similar period of rest ahead of returning to training.England then travel to Australia for another Ashes series, which runs from 21 November until 7 January 2014.However, Pietersen will continue with the brace for at least an extra week after the batsman continued to experience significant pain from his knee.Pietersen first experienced knee pain while fielding in the warm-up match in Queenstown at the start of the month. The problem failed to go away and he spent time off the field during the drawn first Test in Dunedin.Former England captain and Test Match Special summariser Michael Vaughan told BBC Radio 5 live: "England have managed it right it gives an opportunity for someone like Jonny Bairstow. It gives other players opportunities, but it's so important that Kevin Pietersen is right for that Ashes series. He scored a duck and 12 in the first Test, but recovered with 73 in his only innings in the drawn second Test in Wellington.Five days later he said he wanted to commit to all forms of cricket for England in a video posted on YouTube but was subsequently dropped for the third Test against South Africa for sending "provocative texts" about team-mates to opposition players.He flew home before the third Test for further investigation into his injury as Jonny Bairstow came into the England side as his replacement.
No comments:
Post a Comment