KP- England’s Ashes saviour!
While Australians can afford to count performers who have set theBIG stage ablaze in more occasions than one, the same can’t be said about the Englishmen. Names such as Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist, Steve Waugh, Mark Waugh, Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath crop up immediately when one thinks of stars who have shone for Oz over the years. For England, well, names such as Andrew Flintoff is the only man who has shown the passion to not just fuel his team against Australia but also put up commendable performances to speak off. Agreed, I am certainly not ready to count the likes of Paul Collingwood, Andrew Strauss, Jonathan Trott, Alastair Cook in the big boys league.
Trust me, it has got nothing to do with statistics. It is more to do with the mindset and the big match temperament which Freddie possessed, which the names mentioned fall way short off. It is about charisma, character and the ability to strike back when you have your backs firmly to the WALL.
The one who gets added to that elite list is none other than Kevin Pietersen. To have come all the way from South Africa, rising to play for England, captaining the side in a tough time, losing form, captaincy and then coming back to hit a sensational double hundred at Adelaide speaks volumes about KP’s character.
For starters, he is not the one to shy away from a challenge. The Adelaide Oval had thrown enough challenge for him to make it count. He did it and how. He lived up to his billing as one of the neatest strikers of the cherry, bludgeoning 31 fours and a booming six straight over the head of hapless spinner Xavier Doherty.
Statistics apart, this innings has its weight in gold in terms of shifting the balance of the series and his tall presence in the English camp. Serious questions over the last few months have been raised over KP’s batting. His lack of form notwithstanding, his off-the-field behaviour too came under the scanner and not to mention the rant on the social networking site that rubbed many on the wrong side.
