The discussion on Test Match Special between Graeme Swann, Stephen Brenkley (Independent) and John Etheridge (The Sun) chaired by TMS's Simon Mann is now available as a podcast here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/tms
It is an interesting chat touching on England's Ashes debacle and looking forward to the period ahead when, as we know, three recently centrally contracted players will not be available. Trott, through illness, Swann who has retired and of course Kevin Pietersen who was summarily sacked after Australia.
The establishment is visibly closing ranks on the KP affair and this applies to all three of the participants in the podcast. First the myth that Andy Flower resigned of his own accord was maintained by them. They all like Flower and are clearly party to the official line that he, Andy, walked away. Well did he walk, three weeks after saying he wouldn't, or was he pushed? Draw your own conclusions but for me once what Etheridge referred to as "People very high up in the ECB" had decided on KP they decided on Andy Flower as well. This, of course, means ECB Chairman Giles Clarke the "high up" who takes all the key decisions. That they let Andy down gently is admirable given his service and success. But they knew he had to go - so he went.
As far as KP is concerned all three of the participants frankly did not have a kind word to say about him - bar acknowledging the obvious that he is a great cricketer. Even this was watered down by a suggestion that he is "in decline" - not a view that all fans would agree with! Swann said that he and KP were not friends. The journalists indulged in a big of mostly non-specific gossip about how difficult KP can be. All rejected the idea that management was at fault. But the reality of course is that KP can be managed. Michael Vaughan did it. Duncan Fletcher did it and for a time Andrew Strauss and Andy a Flower did it. Do you recall any "issues" during the triumphant 2010/11 Ashes tour when Kevin scored a decent 360 runs at an average of 60? Me neither.
Graeme Swann repeated what he has said previously that there were no particular problems with KP whilst he was still with the recent tour . When Swann went home after the third Test that, implicitly, was when the problems began and the team "fell apart". What were they? Well on the face of what we heard it was about a bit of boorishness by Pietersen on a few occasions. Well we all deal with stress in different ways - maybe KP whistles and is silly. But that is hardly a hanging offence!
Andy Flower left in no small measure because he cataclysmically failed to manage the England team on tour. During that tour two players walked away. One batsman (Cook) fell from being one of the world's best to not being worth his place and the rest mostly batted cluelessly. The bowling wasn’t much better and England failed to finish off Australia all too often. Through it all Kevin Pietersen played as well as anyone, which isn't saying much but he did finish as England's top scoring batsman. And he is the scapegoat!
In the weeks to come we will see England try and recover some dignity as a cricketing force in the Caribbean and then in Bangladesh in the World T20. Whatever happens Ashley Giles will be appointed Head Coach and then in the summer he and Alastair Cook will try and restore some pride in English cricket. It's a tough ask. And they will do it without the one man who can turn a game on its head with the bat. Because the establishment has chosen to do so. The Aussies, laughing themselves into frenzy though they no doubt are, must think we are mad. Perhaps we are!
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